Target: Inuyasha
by Frog-kun
Summary: Four ninjas from the Village Hidden in the Leaves travel to Honshu on an A-Rank mission: Destroy Inuyasha, Kagome, Miroku and Sango! Crossover pairings include: NaruKag; SasuSan; SakuShip.
1. Chapter 1

**An A-Rank Mission!**

Elsewhere, the sun shone with blithe radiance. At Naraku's castle, there was no pure light to be seen, only the tainted sheen of the Shikon Jewel and the pale, ghostly radiance of Kanna's mirror. Eternal dusk reigned upon the premises, where the demons flew freely in the smog-ridden skies.

The sound of the demons' cackles drifted inside. Kanna was sitting on her knees on the bare, wooden floor, holding the mirror directly in front of her so her master could obtain a clear view. Naraku gazed at it with slitted, narrowed eyes.

The image shown on the smooth glass changed constantly: it showed Inuyasha and his friends walking along peaceful meadows. Then it showed Kikyo nursing a wounded soldier in a small, antiquated village. It showed Sesshomaru, proud and aloof, pacing through a dense forest with his tag-alongs behind him. Finally, Naraku saw Koga, Ginta and Hakkaku walking by a riverside, guided by the stream's course.

He chuckled. It was rare moments like these that he allowed himself to cease plotting and to commend himself for his wit. He was the prey, pursued by many, who eventually proved stronger than the hunters. Still, he must not let his guard down for even a minute.

From the shadows behind the shoji screen, his offspring watched him carefully. Short, white-haired Hakudoshi was waiting for his chance. His master seemed to notice his presence because he asked without turning, "Is there something you need, Hakudoshi?"

"No, master Naraku, I do not need anything," Hakudoshi replied stiffly as he stepped into full view. When Naraku didn't answer, he continued, "Aren't you sick of all these enemies you have?"

Naraku chuckled again and this time, he turned to face Hakudoshi. "I quite enjoy the thrill of the chase," he said, his red eyes glinting against the ill-lit background.

Hakudoshi sneered. "But you must tire of them eventually," he insisted.

"And what do you suggest?" Naraku's voice was cold and low. He did not trust Hakudoshi.

"Ninjas," Hakudoshi answered promptly.

"Oh?" Naraku raised an eyebrow questioningly. To Hakudoshi's immense relief, he didn't scoff outwardly at his proposal. "And how would ninjas help improve the situation?"

Hakudoshi bowed his head, as if prostrating himself, only to gaze up sharply within moments, a knowing smirk spreading across his face. "A ninja," he declared, "is deadly and efficient. Besides, your enemies wouldn't expect you to hire one of them."

"Interesting," Naraku drawled. "Well, I'll leave the problem of hiring the ninjas to you."

_In other words, _Hakudoshi thought, _he's saying, "Let's see you do it."_

Did Naraku take Hakudoshi seriously or not? Hakudoshi did not know, and not knowing something always left him frustrated, particularly when it concerned _Naraku_.

His fists clenched as he left the room.

* * *

The land of Japan was an archipelago, a conglomerate consisting of four main islands and thousands of smaller islands. Distinctive of Japan was the hidden villages of the shinobi - home to the ninjas. But in Japan itself, there were no ninjas who would ever willingly consort with demons. They kept to themselves, concerning themselves only with human matters.

This was why Hakudoshi turned his gaze to lands beyond Japan's waters. Far east of Japan lay another continent where the power of ninjas was relied upon. In this land, the ninjas were in fact said to be even more powerful than their Japanese counterparts and demons were usually sealed away. It was all very interesting, Hakudoshi thought. Very interesting indeed.

Riding his demon horse Entei to his destination took only a matter of hours. Hakudoshi stopped inland where the temperature felt warm. The leafy, mountainous landscape resembled Japan very much in this part of the country, which was comforting to Hakudoshi, though he soon found himself getting lost either way.

After asking around, he found that he was in the Fire Country. He was given a map by a kindly old gentleman and told to walk north if he wanted to find the Village Hidden in the Leaves. Just how the location of a hidden village could be known by pretty much every inhabitant of the country was something that was beyond Hakudoshi, but he took the man's word for it and began to walk in the general direction the pointed in.

About two hours of walking later, Hakudoshi encountered his first ninjas.

They were standing around in a forest glade, doing one-armed push-ups enthusiastically. Or, at least, that was the case for two of them. They were the ones in the green spandex suits (though Hakudoshi had no idea what spandex even was, he just thought it looked very strange and no one should wear it, _ever_). The other two seemed to be sparring. The girl threw some sharp-looking knives at the boy, who ducked neatly to avoid them and came swiftly towards the girl, his hands moving rapidly to form strange-looking hand sign. It seemed something was about to happen.

Abruptly, the boy stopped and turned around sharply to face Hakudoshi. So did the girl. They had perceived his presence.

"Who are you?" asked the boy bluntly, staring directly at Hakudoshi. Hakudoshi thought his eyes very much resembled his own, which was a little startling.

"I'm looking for the Village Hidden in the Leaves," said Hakudoshi. "I have a map, but I just can't seem to decipher it."

"It would help if you didn't hold it upside down," the girl pointed out helpfully.

Hakudoshi chose to ignore that.

At that moment, the two males in the green spandex sprang to their feet enthusiastically. They had identical bowl haircuts and Hakudoshi had to force himself not to cringe when looking at them.

"We can help you!" the younger of the two males said eagerly.

"Now, now, Lee!" said the older one with a stern look, which was unfortunately offset by a cheesy, toothy grin. "You can't help someone if you don't prove your worth first!"

"You are absolutely right, Guy-sensei! I am so moved right now!"

"... Are you really ninjas?" Hakudoshi asked, blinking.

"Why of course we are!" the ninja who seemed to be called Guy-sensei declared with a booming, sonorous laugh.

Hakudoshi said nothing.

The girl coughed.

"We're even from the Village Hidden in the Leaves," she added kindly. "My name's Tenten and this is Neji, by the way." She pointed to the boy with the peculiar eyes. He simply sniffed and looked away. "The village is just over that way," Tenten went on, pointing back behind herself. "Just keep walking. You can't miss it."

Hakudoshi was about to say something when the boy named Lee broke in:

"I can carry you there on my back!"

"No," Hakudoshi said. "No, no, no, _no_."

"Awww," said Lee.

* * *

When Hakudoshi eventually made it to Konoha, the Village Hidden in the Leaves, he was guided to an office where he promptly submit his mission request. When asked what type of ninja team he thought was suitable for the task, he responded, "As long as they're not wearing hideous green outfits."

The Hokage Tsunade took the hint - and assigned the job to the only other team on standby. A day later, they set off for Japan. It was not much of an improvement.

* * *

The boat rocked wildly upon the open sea, but not as wildly as a certain hyperactive blonde boy.

"We're going on an A-Rank mission! An A-Rank mission! We're going on an A-Rank mission today!"

"Shut up, Naruto," said Sasuke automatically.

Naruto promptly busted a vein.

"No, _you _shut up, Sasuke!"

"Whatever," said Sasuke. As he said this, he shoved his hands into his pockets and stared out at the waves in front of him. He seemed so damned _cool _that Naruto wanted to throttle him. If Sakura hadn't been seasick in the cabin, she probably would have been quick to agree - minus the throttling part, naturally.

"You think you're so cool, Sasuke," Naruto said sourly, "when I'm the one who's going to be Hokage! Believe it!"

At this point, Sasuke actually half-smiled.

"Bitch, please," he said.

Naruto's growl shook the mast.

"Knock it off, you two," Kakashi told them wearily. He didn't even look up from the adult book he was reading. "At least, don't try anything that would end up with us shipwrecked."

"Kakashi-sensei, have you ever been shipwrecked?" Naruto asked, momentarily forgetting all of his earlier frustrations with Sasuke.

"Yes, I have," said Kakashi, flicking a page in his book. "Then I was rescued by a princess from a far-off land."

"Cool!" Naruto whistled. "Did you kiss her?"

Before Kakashi could remind Naruto that he wore a mask everywhere and that kissing would be uncomfortable against the fabric, Sasuke said, "Naruto, you realise he's pulling your leg?"

"Oh," said Naruto, looking slightly dejected. "Were you pulling my leg, Kakashi-sensei?"

"How could I?" Kakashi replied. "I'm three metres away."

"Oh, yeah!" Naruto's face lit up with slow realisation. "Sasuke, stop trying to trick me!"

Sasuke banged his head against the side of the deck. "Why do I even bother…?"

Just then, Sakura emerged on deck. She was still rather pale and still felt slightly dizzy but otherwise, she was shipshape. She blinked against the harsh sunlight and cool breeze and squinted when she noticed Sasuke, Naruto and Kakashi just ahead of her. She was on the verge of calling out to them when she heard a voice behind her: "Boo!"

She squealed, and the others turned to look at her. Hakudoshi, Naraku's incarnation, stepped out from the cabin behind her. "Are you sure you're a ninja?" he asked. "You seem pretty weak to me."

Sakura felt a burst of indignation against the white-haired boy before her but before she could say anything, Naruto walked over and fixed Hakudoshi with a very insolent stare. "I don't like you," he said bluntly. "You remind me of Sasuke."

"Well, boohoo," Hakudoshi sneered.

Naruto frowned. He had met Hakudoshi only a few days ago at the Hidden Leaf village. Hakudoshi had been impatient and irritable about getting a team over to his homeland, an obscure island a week's boat trip away from the Fire Country. He had not seemed happy to receive Team 7 but he had to be satisfied with Tsunade's explanation that Team 7 was the only team that could be produced at his short notice. The other, more experienced teams were either on reconnaissance missions to the Sand and Sound villages or working to restore Konoha after the recent invasion. For Naruto, despite the excitement of an A-Rank mission, he couldn't stand Hakudoshi at all. For the majority of the journey, he had picked fights with his dubious client.

At that moment, Kakashi sauntered over with a stern expression on what could be seen of his face. "Naruto, it does not pay to be rude to your employer."

Hakudoshi smiled to himself. Kakashi was right. _He _was the employer. Not Naraku. "Now," he said aloud, "Would you like to have more information on your targets?"

Sasuke wandered over and his intent face was like a nod to Hakudoshi. The white-haired boy, his face suddenly serene, pulled out a small pile of sketches and handed one to each of the Ninjas.

"You know, if your drawings didn't look like they were made by a two-year old, we'd have a bit less trouble identifying these people," Naruto commented but he stared at the sketches anyway.

There was a picture of a woman holding what looked like the Hiragana 'he' (**A/N This Japanese character looks like an inverted letter 'v'**). "Huh?"

Sakura examined her sketch and giggled. "My target's pretty hot!" It was a Buddhist monk with sexy black hair a bit different from Sasuke's.

Sasuke glanced at his picture of a girl in strange attire holding a bow and arrows and Kakashi had the drawing of a man with long hair holding a giant sword. "Like Zabuza and Kisame's…"

"Well, what do you think?" asked Hakudoshi.

"They're going down!" Naruto declared somewhat cockily. "Believe it!"

To his surprise, Hakudoshi's gaze softened. "Just you wait," he said. "That group's peskier than a fly. You'll have a hard time killing them off."

* * *

Inuyasha held his sword above his head and swung it, directly at his hapless victim below. "Die!" he yelled with ferocity, his robes swishing as he moved with startling acceleration.

Around him, the trees rustled, as if reacting to the fighting. The lizard demon's howl was piercing. It hissed in anguish, clutching the open stab wound it had received. Hurrying backwards a few paces, the lizard demon did not see where it was going in its haste; it fell over and tripped, falling painfully on some sharp rocks behind it. It howled and thrashed about, its long, scaly green tail twitching madly in desperation.

Jumping off Kirara, who was flying over Inuyasha, Sango raised her giant boomerang and yelled, "Time to put the demon out of its misery! Hiraikotsu!" Then she tossed her weapon.

The sound the Hiraikotsu made was like that of keening death. The lizard demon gave one last hiss and ducked for cover. It was lucky to escape a fatal hit, although its tail had been sliced cleanly off. The blood sprayed and the demon howled in its final breath. The Hiraikotsu swung in a graceful arc and as it sped purposefully back towards Sango, it took the lizard demon's head with it. It certainly made for a gory sight.

Miroku slipped off Kirara's back as well. He hurried towards the demon's corpse, which was giving off a repulsive, demonic aura. Reaching into the folds of his robe, Miroku pulled from thence a sutra charm. He placed it on the lizard demon's body and took a step back, murmuring a small prayer. The body glowed and it gave off no aura any more.

"There," said Miroku in a satisfied tone. "It's been purified."

There was a sound of someone panting slightly and Kagome appeared on the scene, Shippo on her shoulder. "Did you defeat the demon?" she asked breathlessly.

"Yeah," said Inuyasha, giving the headless corpse a kick. "Come on, let's get going."

"I'm hungry," Shippo whined. "I want lunch."

"Same here," Sango agreed, taking hold of her flat stomach.

Miroku eyed Kagome's yellow daypack vociferously. "Do you have any Ninja food, Kagome?" Ninja food was the name that Kagome's friends had dubbed her packaged foods. It was instant and it was tasty – the sort of thing a Ninja might prepare with his magic.

Kagome unzipped her bag and peered inside. She said, "I've only got some instant ramen and we'll need water to prepare it. Unfortunately, we're in the middle of a forest." As she said this, the trees rustled again in the win, as if to stress her point.

Inuyasha sighed. "Then we may as well keep going."

It was a peaceful and serene day. The midday sunlight filtered through the tree branches, shining warmly on the dirt path the party trod. Inuyasha was in the lead, arms folded underneath his robes, his silver hair swishing behind him. Kagome was close by, yabbering on to Shippo about something. Sango and Miroku were walking beside each other and Kirara, in her kitten form, was perched on Sango's shoulder.

"Don't you think it's beautiful on sunny days," Sango mused, "When the birds are singing and there's a cool, pleasant breeze? And there hasn't been an earthquake for a while."

"Oh, yes," Miroku agreed solemnly, "It's a beautiful day. Normally, we're thinking about Naraku but sometimes, it's nice to talk about the weather."

As he said this, his hand moved swiftly up and down Sango's backside. She had changed back into her long skirt but she still didn't appreciate Miroku caressing her.

Next thing that could be heard was a loud, ringing slap and a furious voice: "Pervert!"

"At least Miroku's bold," Shippo remarked offhandedly. He suddenly eyed Inuyasha. "Inuyasha, you never make any advances on Kagome whatsoever. You should try bathing together in the hot springs sometime."

Next thing that could be heard was a fist connecting with a head and an indignant voice: "Ouch!"

"You should learn to keep your mouth shut," Inuyasha said haughtily.

"Sit, boy."

Inuyasha came crashing face-first onto the forest floor. Sango and Miroku stood on his head as they walked by, adding further injury to injury.

Kirara meowed.

"Why isn't anyone else sane here?" Inuyasha demanded. Suddenly, he went cross-eyed, looking at something on his nose.

"Is something the matter, Inuyasha?" Kagome inquired as she looked back.

Inuyasha slapped his nose. "It's Myoga," he said, holding the flattened flea-demon in his palm for the others to examine.

"Greetings, master Inuyasha," Myoga said, making an attempt to stand.

Shippo hopped off Kagome's shoulder and ran over to Myoga. He looked politely curious. "What's wrong, Myoga?"

Myoga looked strangely exhausted. His eyes blinked and his nose twitched as he spoke earnestly: "I was just at shore when I saw a boat anchor in. It looked like one of those vessels that travel a long way overseas. Anyway, I stuck around to see the passengers disembark and…"

"And?" Inuyasha prompted him.

Myoga continued, "They were Ninjas!"

"Ninjas!" Sango, Miroku, Shippo and Kagome exchanged bemused looks. Inuyasha blinked.

Myoga nodded. He seemed quite serious now. "They were Konoha ninjas! The best of the best! Even people from overseas have heard of the legacy of the Village Hidden in the Leaves."

"I haven't," said Shippo.

"Me neither." Sango and Miroku shook their heads.

Myoga looked crestfallen.

"So what are Konoha ninjas?" Kagome asked, frowning.

"They're exactly that," Myoga explained. "They're highly trained Ninjas from different clans, each with their own special techniques."

"Sounds scary," said Shippo. He looked over his shadow apprehensively, wondering if there could be a Ninja following him now.

"So what's this got to do with us?" Inuyasha demanded roughly.

Myoga coughed and resumed his tale. "With the ninjas, I saw Naraku's incarnate, Hakudoshi, also disembark."

"Oh!" said Miroku. "So that means those ninjas are our enemies!"

"Quite right," Myoga said, "And it's a bad thing, I tell you."

At that precise moment, the bushes rustled and Naruto entered the scene, still grasping Hakudoshi's sketch. He had a very clueless expression on his face. At the sight of him, Myoga gave forth a very comical wail and hid in Kirara's fur.

"It's a Konoha ninja!" he wailed. "Look at his headband."

"That symbol doesn't look like a leaf," Kagome commented, remembering that 'Konoha' meant 'Leaf'.

The Konoha ninja turned around and spotted the people who were watching him intently. He looked at them. They looked at him back. He stared at the sketch. They continued to stare at him.

Finally, Naruto walked over to Sango and asked, "Do you know this lady?" He showed her the drawing.

_That's me, _Sango thought in amazement. The sketch was a little off but it showed her in her demon slayer uniform, with her hair done up tightly into a bony tail and grasping the Hiraikotsu with a ready expression. But before she could indicate as much, the blonde went on. "I can't for the life of me figure out what that 'he'-thing is."

Sango hastily hid the Hiraikotsu behind her back. "Me neither," she said.

Naruto looked very downcast. Because Sango had her hair down and was dressed in the skirt, he did not recognise her; and he thought the Hiraikotsu was actually part of her clothing, since he could not see all of it.

Although Kagome, Miroku and Shippo thought Naruto was amusing, Inuyasha glared at him and flexed his own sharp claws. "Just who the hell are you?" he demanded.

Naruto looked up and blinked. His bright blue eyes made him appear as un-Ninja-ish as possible. He looked so carefree, so innocent, that even Inuyasha could not feel hostile towards him. Then he stood with his hands on his hip and gave a very broad grin to all. "I'm Naruto Uzumaki and one day I'm going to be Hokage, the best ninja in my village! Believe it!"

Shippo stuck his nose in the air. His long bushy tail twitched with an imperious air. "You don't look like a ninja. In fact, you look pretty dorky to me."

"Why, you…!" Naruto was suddenly furious. He lurched forward to give Shippo a piece of his mind, when suddenly; he caught sight of what Sango had been hiding.

He stopped.

"Why'd you stop?" Shippo demanded. But Naruto wasn't listening to him any more. He looked at the Hiraikotsu, then at Hakudoshi's sketch, where the 'he'-shaped object was depicted. One could see his mind was jerking into gear and that he was figuring out something that was significant.

At last, he pointed a finger at Sango and shouted, "You're the person I'm supposed to bust up!"

Everyone gasped.

* * *

"Where's Naruto?" Sakura asked Sasuke.

They were walking down the path towards the nearest village. Having disembarked the ship, Team 7 was now starting the search for the targets. Apparently, Inuyasha, Kagome, Sango and Miroku travelled a lot and so were difficult to find unless a trap had been set for them. Kakashi wanted to find the targets, and then set a trap for them.

It was the team's first assassination mission and Kakashi was very cautious about letting his almost virgin squad take it on. But in his opinion, Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura had to live through at least one killing mission to understand the life and death situation in ninja missions. Shinobi weren't always the heroes.

Of course, Kakashi planned to do most of the murdering himself and let the others stay back and watch how it was done. But now, Naruto had already wandered off somewhere.

"He's probably gone to that forest over there," Sasuke said calmly, "Thinking we were behind him."

The forest looked gay and welcoming.

"What an idiot," Sakura muttered. "I guess we have to go looking for him."

Kakashi was reading _Make out paradise _as he walked. For some reason, this irritated Sakura. "Stop reading that stupid book, Kakashi-sensei! We've got to find Naruto!"

"Of course, Sakura," said Kakashi with a small sigh. Slipping the book into his pocket, he nodded decisively. "Let's check out the forest first."

Kakashi wasn't particularly warm-hearted and he had faith in Naruto's skills. He wasn't too on-edge about the boy's well-being.

He should have been. For Naruto was currently confronting Inuyasha with a very intent purpose. Inuyasha had pushed his friends behind him and had drawn the Tetsusaiga. His yellow, inhuman eyes were locked onto Naruto's suddenly serious and determined expression; neither was to back down.

Myoga had already escaped; such was his fear of the Konoha ninja. Everyone else present watched apprehensively as Naruto's hands moved to perform his trademark technique.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

Yes, it would prove to be an interesting fight.

**Preview**

Inuyasha: Who are these Ninjas? Why are they trying to kill us?

Naruto: Ha! We'll beat your butt!

Inuyasha: Heh. Whatever.

Naruto: Huh? Who's that strange man talking to Sasuke?

Inuyasha: It's Sesshomaru!

Kagome: Next time in Target: Inuyasha: Sasuke meets Sesshomaru: a Deadly Encounter!


	2. Chapter 2

**Sasuke meets Sesshomaru: a deadly encounter**

A sudden cloud covered the sun, darkening the atmosphere and fuelling the primeval sense of danger. In spite of himself, Inuyasha felt the hair on the back of his neck rise.

"Shadow clones," he grunted as he surveyed the results of Naruto's Jutsu. "So you really are a Ninja." He remembered that the Demon Ninja Hoshiyomi had used Shadow Clones on him before. Inuyasha told himself to forget that he had not actually figured out a way to counter them.

The Naruto clones were literally populating the forest. One of the Naruto clones standing on a tree branch grinned. "Of course I'm a Ninja! And one day, I'll be the best!"

Despite the current tense situation, Kagome was suddenly reminded of Inuyasha.

"_One day, I'll become a full-fledged demon!"_ How often had he said that when she had first met him?

Kagome felt her anxiety rise. She placed her hands on the side of her mouth and called out, "Go easy on him, Inuyasha! Don't kill him!" She had a feeling Naruto wasn't a bad sort.

"What do you mean?" Inuyasha shot back. "He's been hired by Naraku!"

Naruto was starting to get bored of talking. "Time to get bent, cat man!"

Every single clone shot forward to rush Inuyasha. Naruto seemed to have forgotten all standard Ninja tactics he could have employed at that point. Inuyasha emitted a frightful growl and swung his sword at the clones, causing them to vanish in a puff of smoke. The real Naruto was taken aback by the force of the blow and was forced to take a few hurried paces away from Tetsusaiga's range.

"Cat man, eh?!" Inuyasha roared indignantly. "These are dog ears, not cat ears!"

Shippo mentally reminded himself to call Inuyasha 'Cat man' when the next opportunity arose.

"Well, excuse me if I couldn't tell the difference!" Naruto snorted. He pulled out a Shuriken from the pouch at his right leg. "Cat man!" he yelled again, tauntingly. He threw the Shuriken and smirked. _I've_ _got him, _he assured himself as he watched his weapon speed rapidly towards a scowling Inuyasha.

"Hiraikotsu!"

As Sango cried out, she released her boomerang. Although it had seemed heavy and awkward to Naruto, the Hiraikotsu was easily capable of interrupting the Shuriken's flight. It also had the added bonus, Naruto noted, of flying back towards Sango, who was readily able to reclaim it.

"So that's what the 'he'-thing does," he mused.

Just then, there was the sound of a bowstring being pulled tightly back. Alarmed, Naruto turned his head and saw Kagome, feet apart, pointing an arrow at him. "Your name's Naruto, right?" she called out urgently. "Listen, you've got to stop fighting us! We've done nothing to wrong you! If you keep trying to kill us, we will be forced to kill you!"

Something in her voice and facial expression caused Naruto to hesitate.

"That's right," Kagome continued, "We don't have to be enemies! If you leave, there'll be no hard feelings!"

Kagome's manner could be persuasive, probably because she often told the truth and earnestly believed what she said. She could have impaled Naruto on an arrow any time after he had been distracted but instead she had chosen to spare him. Naruto knew then that she was a merciful foe, so unlike the majority of Ninja he had faced. And at once, his respect for his targets increased.

But the young Ninja seemed to have trouble getting words out. "But… but…" It was against his Ninja way to simply give up without trying, or to give up at all, even. On the other hand, there was Kagome. He struggled with himself, unsure of what to think or do.

Just then, the bushes rustled and Sasuke appeared from behind them, as calm and collected as ever. Naruto was almost glad to see his arrogant face staring down at him. "Sasuke!" he yelled. "What are you doing here?"

"I was going to ask you that, loser," Sasuke replied. He glanced briefly in Inuyasha's direction before turning back to Naruto. "You don't go chasing the target on your own. We've got to work as a team."

Naruto's bottom lip stuck out obstinately. "Like you can talk, Mr 'I'm-too-good-for-everyone'!"

Inuyasha stepped forward and pointed the Tetsusaiga at Sasuke. Feeling as if things were getting a little out-of-hand, he demanded evenly, "Who are you? And how many more are with you?"

Sasuke was saved from replying by Sakura's appearance. She had been slower than Sasuke making her way through the thick bushes. She stopped panting when she saw Inuyasha; her lips pursed and she drew a kunai, her eyes flashing with a determination to impress Sasuke. Kakashi also appeared seemingly out of nowhere next to Sakura, and his arms were folded, his expression deadly serious. _Damn it_, he thought. _We've lost the element of surprise. Now we'll have to overpower our targets. _

"Sasuke, Sakura, Naruto," he began in an urgent tone, "Stay back. I'll have to use my Sharingan."

Inuyasha bit his lip. _Sharingan? _He thought, confused._ What's that? _If a Ninja was using it, it didn't sound like a good thing.

Miroku coolly examined the Ninjas. They were a motley bunch. The only one who looked like a proper Shinobi was Kakashi, with his colourless uniform and mask. The others were just kids. Gritting his teeth together, Miroku ran forward next to Inuyasha. "Get behind me," he whispered out of the corner of his mouth, and Inuyasha understood that he was going to unveil his Wind Tunnel. Obediently, he stepped backwards and watched silently as Miroku said in a threatening tone, "Don't try anything or I may have to destroy you. There's a hole in my right hand and it will suck you up."

Naruto scoffed, "He's lying!"

"I don't know," Sakura answered fretfully; "He seems pretty serious to me."

Kakashi, who had his hand on his headband covering his left eye, stopped in the process of pulling it up. _Either that monk's bluffing or he's giving us a chance to retreat, _he thought.

Miroku frowned. "If you don't believe me…" He began to remove the beads covering his arms.

Sensing danger, Kakashi was by Miroku in a flash, a kunai pressed against his neck. Shippo gasped. "I didn't even see him move!"

"Me neither," Kagome breathed.

Inuyasha looked stunned.

"Miroku!" Sango called out anxiously, preparing to hurl her Hiraikotsu.

"Don't do it!" Miroku rasped out, feeling the knife's blade rub against his throat. He looked up into Kakashi's face and saw no empathy there, only deadly earnest.

He was screwed.

Suddenly, there was a growl; Kakashi turned, saw Kirara and, not expecting a kitten to do much in battle, was surprised to see her transform.

Kirara rushed at Kakashi. The Ninja swung around with a roundhouse kick; his foot connected with the nekomata demon's head and sent her flying several metres into a tree. Sango was distraught, and rushed to her pet's aid.

Meanwhile, Kakashi had been distracted long enough for Miroku to escape his grasp and remove his beads. "Wind Tunnel!" he yelled hoarsely, attracting the immediate attention of all onlookers.

The Wind Tunnel was like a high-powered vacuum that could pull even trees from their roots. With the wind, Sakura felt panic set in. She latched on to Sasuke and for once, he didn't see to mind, being scared witless himself. He and Naruto both held on to the trees near them, eyes screwed shut in fright.

Kakashi opened his visible eye wide. The wind was so powerful that it threatened to whip off his mask. He threw his kunai at Miroku, who was forced to close his Wind Tunnel and duck. Kakashi, desperate not to let Miroku continue to use the Wind Tunnel, chased after him.

Only to be blocked by a serious-faced Inuyasha.

To everyone's surprise, including Kakashi's himself, Kakashi ordered, "Retreat!" Before his students could protest, Kakashi had ushered them away, quickly and painlessly and without words. It was so much so that Inuyasha was too shocked to go after them. He just stood staring after them, his sword limp in his hand.

"What-what was all that about?" he gasped weakly.

Somewhere in the forest, Kagura had watched the entire exchange of blows. Her blood-red lips formed into a smug smile. "That Kakashi did pretty well not to get sucked into the monk's Wind Tunnel." Then she thought even deeper. "Could Kakashi be the one to defeat Naraku and win my freedom? No, that's impossible; he's on Naraku's side."

She sighed and pulled from her kimono a light blue feather. There was a sudden whoosh of wind as the feather transformed into Kagura's mode of transport. It was essentially a larger feather about a metre long. It was sturdy yet light and Kagura could order the wind to guide the vehicle as she pleased. She set off, following the fast pace of Kakashi and his subordinates as they escaped from the forest.

* * *

"Kakashi-sensei! Why'd we have to retreat?" Naruto whined. They had successfully retreated now and were out of the forest and into the meadows.

The wind had picked up slightly in a cool change, its noise and tossing of the blades of grass a vivid reminder of the Wind Tunnel. "Did our retreat have something to do with the hole in the monk's hand?" Sasuke inquired, scrutinising his teacher's face for a reaction.

Kakashi nodded. "Hakudoshi never mentioned it. I think this was a test of our powers. Naraku's a cool customer; he probably had someone watching us back there."

Sakura looked worried. "What do we do, then? About the monk's hand, I mean. How would you combat it?"

Kakashi did not reply. He stared at the grass and thought, but nothing came to him. It wasn't a Jutsu and therefore impossible to analyse with his Sharingan. And Kakashi had no idea what tricks Miroku and the others had up their sleeves; Hakudoshi had said the targets would be difficult to overcome and he was right.

Even deep in thought, Kakashi noticed the wind pick up with the arrival of an unsolicited visitor.

It was a woman with intelligent, shrewd eyes, wearing a traditional kimono and holding an ornate fan. Her hair was tightly done in a bun so it would not distract her in a battle and from her long, pointy ears hung what looked like charms. "Who are you?" Kakashi asked evenly.

His students were quiet and fearful.

The woman smirked. "I am Kagura, mistress of the wind. I watched you and your students fight back there. You're no pushovers yourselves."

"Are you Hakudoshi's brother?" Kakashi inquired. He could feel the same presence of Chakra on Kagura's person as he had sensed on Hakudoshi.

"You could say that," said Kagura pleasantly, all the while without removing the smugness on her face.

"She looks nothing like him!" Sakura whispered to Naruto. He nodded in agreement, having no idea what was going on.

"Anyway," Kagura continued, lowering her fan, "I also noted that you had problems with Miroku's Wind Tunnel. If you want him out of the way, use this." She motioned a pale hand behind her, where everyone could see an abnormally large flying insect buzzing deliberately. "They are Naraku's poisonous insects. They poison Naraku and block up his Wind Tunnel." _And they will also help Naraku to spy on you, _she added to herself, wondering what the Ninjas would make of that if she told them.

Kakashi, his eyes widening slightly, recognised the insects Kagura had indicated. The Saimyosho, now extinct in the Fire Country, thanks to its ability to block up a Ninja's entire Chakra Network with a single sting. Somehow, Naraku had hold of these insects and could manipulate them to his will.

He said, "No, thanks. We'll figure out our own way to defeat the monk." He didn't want to risk Naraku using these insects against him and his team mates. From what he knew of his employer already, Naraku could turn the tables instantly.

Sasuke opened her mouth to ask the reasons supporting Kakashi's decisions, but he silenced him with a harried look. Naruto, however, could not be kept quiet. "We won't accept some stinking insects from Hakudoshi's sister!" he exclaimed suddenly. He _really _didn't like Hakudoshi.

Kagura sneered. "All right then," she said; "It's your funeral." And with that, she transformed her feather and flew away.

"Sensei, why?" Sakura could not help demanding. "That lady was trying to help us!"

Kakashi said nothing. He had a feeling this mission was going to get out of hand really quickly.

Suddenly, Sasuke piped up: "I'm going to look for water."

That was Sasuke's way, blunt and to the point. Kakashi nodded and then Sasuke was gone.

* * *

The sight of a cool, fresh, running stream caused Rin to squeal in utter delight. "Look, Lord Sesshomaru, Master Jaken – a stream! Can I go play in it?"

"You may," intoned Sesshomaru solemnly as he stood by the water's edge.

As he halted, Ah-n the two-headed dragon demon stopped, causing the Jaken, who was sleeping on Au-un's back, to awaken. Jaken stirred and opened his eyes, squinting in the afternoon sun. He saw Sesshomaru had stopped and noticed his gaze was directed upstream, his calm eyes narrowed. "What is it, Lord Sesshomaru?" he asked, gripping the Staff of Two Heads tightly.

Sesshomaru did not reply. The next second, the object of his gaze had appeared anyway.

It was a boy, probably no older than twelve or thirteen, with his hands in his pockets. His calmness and intent was that of person beyond his years, although it didn't appear as if the boy meant any hostility. On the contrary, he ignored Sesshomaru, Rin and Jaken utterly and proceeded to fill his water bottles by the stream.

Rin stopped wetting her feet in the stream and scrutinised the newcomer closely. Then she approached him and said, "My name is Rin and that is Master Jaken, Ah-un and Lord Sesshomaru. What is your name?"

"Sasuke Uchiha."

Rin beamed. "Mr Sasuke, are you like my friend Kohaku and enjoy melons?"

"It's none of your business."

Sesshomaru didn't say anything. Jaken slapped his forehead and muttered something to himself about what a stupid girl Rin was.

As he finished collecting water, it occurred to Sasuke that these people might know more information about his targets. So he asked Sesshomaru, "Do you know anything about Inuyasha, Miroku, Sango and Kagome?"

Sesshomaru glared. Jaken squealed. "How dare you speak to Lord Sesshomaru with such disrespect?! And about his pathetic half-brother, no less!"

Sasuke eyed Jaken. Had he struck gold? "Half-brother?" he said inquiringly.

Jaken nodded. "Inuyasha is only a half-demon, whereas Sesshomaru is a full-fledged, perfect demon!"

Since he had come from a demon-free Konoha, the term 'Full-fledged demon' shook Sasuke quite a lot, although he didn't show his unease. "Are Kagura and Hakudoshi demons as well?" he asked, pushing his luck further.

Jaken said, "Well – yes." And he nodded again.

"And what about Naraku?"

Jaken started to go off on a rant about Naraku, but Sesshomaru silenced him. Turning to Sasuke, he asked, "What is his relation to you?" His tone was icy calm. Was this, perhaps, another enemy? he mused to himself, frowning. Although he was a mere boy, the aura around Sasuke distinguished him from normal, (in Sesshomaru's opinion) pathetic humans. It was a bit like that of a priestess's, only not quite so pure. Also, his accent betrayed that he was foreign to this region of Japan.

What could Naraku be plotting now?

Sasuke repeated the words he had spoken to Rin: "It's none of your business." Then he walked off without as much as another word.

"He's strange," Rin commented the moment Sasuke was gone.

"Indeed," said Jaken.

Sesshomaru did not say anything.

**Preview**

Inuyasha: It's you again!

Naruto: Yeah! Unfortunately, I'm not supposed to fight you this time.

Inuyasha: Feh! Whatever!

Naruto: Hey, you didn't tell me you were half-demon!

Inuyasha: And you didn't tell me you had a demon sealed you.

Kagome: Next time in Target: Inuyasha! The Fate of the Half-demon!


	3. Chapter 3

**The Fate of the Half-demon**

When Kagome went to school, she wondered how her friends would react if she told them that instead of spending yesterday with Leukaemia, she was in the Warring States Era getting attacked by Ninjas. She doubted they'd believe her, for a start. Yet still, she pondered on those Ninjas, for intuition told her she hadn't seen the last of them yet.

The one in the mask was obviously the leader. He was no doubt the strongest and most ruthless as well, although Kagome had the feeling he cared for his team mates, judging by his reaction when Miroku had almost killed them.

But… the one called Naruto intrigued her the most. Kagome had felt a strange aura from him, as if he was a half-demon, although he had displayed no demonic abilities. He was also so exuberant, so full of life.

He reminded her of Inuyasha.

Kagome didn't mind the possibility of seeing him again. In fact, she rather looked forward to it.

Naruto was not the sort of person who listened overmuch to given orders. When Kakashi had said, "Don't approach or start a fight with our targets until we figure out together how to combat Miroku's Wind Tunnel," Naruto was thinking wistfully of food and the sort of things he would eat were he back home.

Naruto was addicted to ramen noodles. If he did not have it, he suffered withdrawals. So now he was rummaging his pack, searching vainly for any packets of it he possessed. Unfortunately, he had eaten it all on the boat trip. A tragedy indeed!

And then he smelt it – the scent of ramen! Actually, he did not smell it, but somehow he knew that someone close by was heating water with the intention of preparing ramen. He followed this tug from away camp and came across the river Sasuke had visited the day before. Some new campers were there, Sesshomaru and his gang having moved on. A girl wearing a sailor uniform totally alien to Naruto was the one preparing the ramen. He recognised her at once, if only for the clothing. It was that girl with the bow and arrows from yesterday, although it didn't seem as if she had them with her now.

Someone cleverer than Naruto would have taken advantage of the situation, but he didn't do this. He merely walked towards the girl and said, in a raspy sort of voice, "Please… may I have some ramen?"

The girl jumped and then she exclaimed, with surprise evident in her face, "Oh, you're that Ninja Naruto!"

"Listen," said Naruto, "I won't attack you if you give me ramen. Okay?"

That confirmed Kagome's suspicion that Naruto was not a bad kid. If he was, he would have attacked her and finished preparing the ramen himself. Or was he just stupid?

"Sit down," she said. "My name's Kagome. I was preparing this Ninja Food for some of my friends but you can have some if you want."

"Ninja Food?" Naruto repeated, cocking his head to the side.

Kagome explained the inside joke she had with her friends and then asked a really pointless question: "Do Ninjas actually prepare food like this?"

"I dunno," said Naruto. "I like it, but Sasuke hates it."

"Sasuke?" Kagome had heard Naruto address the black-haired Shinobi as Sasuke. "You mean your team mate?"

"Yeah." Naruto nodded. "He's a jerk. Kakashi-sensei – the one with the mask – is pretty cool. And you know Sakura, the girl with the short pink hair? Don't tell anyone but I like her. I mean, like-like her."

It was funny how Naruto was confiding in Kagome as if he hadn't tried to kill her or her friends the day before. Maybe it was thanks to the Ninja Food they were friendly.

The water had finished boiling on the makeshift stove. Kagome took it, poured it into the noodles and stirred. She prepared two cups this way. She handed the first to Naruto and kept the second. Naruto proceeded to wolf down the ramen as if it were going out of fashion. "Hey, not so fast!" Kagome insisted. "The water's still hot!"

"I know," Naruto grinned. And then he decided to eat more slowly. For some reason, he felt very happy just being near Kagome, for she came across as agreeable to him. When he had first seen her, he had never really taken a proper look at her. Now, he saw her luscious black hair that swished as she ate, her pretty eyes, her charming manners. And her laugh; it was as if she had not a care in the world.

_Kagome is so beautiful, _he thought, rather wistfully.

Kagome could still feel the demonic aura she had initially sensed on Naruto, but it wasn't as strong as it had been when he was fighting. It was as if it had been sealed away now that he was on standby.

"Naruto," she began, trying not to get directly to the point. "Do you know any demons, beside my friends Inuyasha, Shippo and Kirara?"

"Well…" Naruto considered. "Thirteen years ago, a Nine-Tailed Fox demon attacked my village. But I was only a baby."

"Oh, it's just that," Kagome said slowly, "You seem to have some kind of demonic aura on you. But maybe it's just my imagination," she added hastily.

Naruto didn't say anything. _Did I offend him? _Kagome wondered, regretting that she had asked any questions.

Then he spoke: "The Nine-Tailed Fox that attacked my village… the Fourth Hokage sealed it inside me." But he wasn't going to reveal what an asset the Fox's power was, especially in combat. Or of the price his social standing had suffered.

Just then, there was a voice behind the two: "Kagome! You've been ages preparing the Ninja Food!"

It was Shippo. Naruto turned around and spotted him, and then his eyes narrowed.

_I have a feeling this isn't going to turn out well, _Kagome sighed and thought.

Shippo's eyes widened to the size of tennis balls. "Kagome! Why are you feeding the Ninja our Ninja Food?"

"Because he's a Ninja?" Kagome wanted to say, but she stayed quiet. Suddenly, she felt like a traitor.

Naruto said, "You, you're a Fox demon, right?" His voice lacked the warmth it had earlier. Shippo was suddenly afraid.

Naruto's next question was unexpected and again, there was no vitality in his words. "When you grow up, are you going to attack villages and screw up people's lives?"

Kagome gazed sadly at him.

Shippo blinked and said, "Uh… no."

"Good foxy," said Naruto, randomly feeling happy again. He patted Shippo on the head.

Shippo looked as if Naruto had asked his hand in marriage.

"Kagome? Shippo?" Inuyasha's voice drifted over and didn't sound very far away. "We're leaving now!"

"Quick, Naruto!" Kagome hissed. "Hide!"

But it was too late.

Inuyasha came into view, holding Kagome's bike over his shoulder. At the sight of Naruto, he frowned and set down the bike by a nearby tree. "It's you!" he exclaimed. He didn't sound too cordial.

"Now, now," said Kagome nervously. "Naruto's not that bad! He's quite nice once you get to know him!"

"Stay out of this, Kagome!" Inuyasha growled. He drew his sword.

There was nothing else for it. "Sit!"

Naruto walked over to the fallen Inuyasha and asked him, "Does Kagome have special powers over you, cat man?"

Inuyasha looked ready to strangle someone, preferably Naruto.

"Sit!" Kagome repeated. Inuyasha fell over again.

While Naruto liked Kagome almost more than he liked Sakura, he really despised Inuyasha for his attitude. (Shippo was not too bad.) Naruto would fight Inuyasha many times over to prove he was the more capable of the two. Wondering whether it was Inuyasha's sword that gave him his superhuman strength, he prised it from his grip. "Fight me without your stupid trick!" he yelled. He tossed the untransformed Tetsusaiga over his shoulder with relish. "Now let's see what you've got!"

"Uh oh," said Shippo.

"No, Naruto!" Kagome screamed, panic rising in her bosom. "Inuyasha needs the Tetsusaiga!"

"Huh? How come?" said Naruto with confusion. He had a kunai placed at Inuyasha's neck. Suddenly, hearing an inhuman growl from his opponent, Naruto looked down.

And screamed.

Inuyasha resembled something from a nightmare. Shippo and Kagome immediately paled. They had seen Inuyasha's full-demon form a few times but the horror they felt whenever they saw it never seemed to fade. It being Naruto's first time, he quickly recoiled feeling a mixture of shock, fear and disgust. Inuyasha reached out and swiped with his claws. Naruto held up his hands, as if in prayer, and the next second he was hit.

Only, he was a log.

Inuyasha snarled. Shippo exclaimed, "Was that Ninja Magic?"

Kagome gasped: Inuyasha had turned his feral head towards Shippo; it almost looked like he was smiling at the thought of tearing his companion limb from limb. She screamed, and said fox demon was too petrified to move.

Inuyasha leaped forward, flexing his claws; Kagome's heartbeat tripled. Shippo started crying. He closed his eyes and sobbed, not particularly wanting to die. Death seemed to come in slow motion. Why wasn't it quick? Shippo opened his eyes, fully expecting to see Inuyasha's very creepy face in front of him.

Instead, Inuyasha seemed quite stunned, and in his outstretched hands was the Tetsusaiga. He hadn't bothered transforming it, for he knew from his gap in memory that he had temporarily become a monster.

And who had thrown the Tetsusaiga from above?

"Naruto!" Shippo cried out joyfully.

The Ninja landed on the ground and grinned. "Kagome said Inuyasha needs the Tetsusaiga so I gave it to him!"

"You probably think I'm a monster…" Inuyasha began hesitantly.

"No, you're not," Naruto said at once. "I've seen people a lot more retarded in the head than you are, cat man." He was thinking of Gaara, who he understood.

Inuyasha sighed, but he refused to allow himself be frustrated this time. "My name's Inuyasha," he said.

Now that he had decided that Inuyasha was a lot more interesting than he had assumed, Naruto smiled. "All right then, Inuyasha," he said, "Have you got a demon inside you?"

"Well, sort of," Inuyasha replied, thinking of the demon blood running through his veins.

"Oh, okay then!" Naruto said. He turned to leave. "Well, see ya!"

"Wait!" Kagome and Shippo cried out in dismay. "Aren't you staying?"

"No," Naruto replied heavily, shaking his head. "My friends will get worried."

And then he was gone. Inuyasha looked down at the sword Naruto had retrieved for him and was deep in thought. He began to realise what Kagome had already figured out and that though Naruto was an enemy Ninja, given the right circumstances, he could be a friend. He wasn't so bad after all; in fact, he saved Shippo's life and no doubt Kagome's as well.

A good question that Inuyasha also pondered was "Why?"

* * *

Sakura was cooking lunch. She prided herself on her ability to cook; her mother had taught her well. As she started stirring up the soup she would dish put to her team mates, she wondered whether Sasuke would be impressed. She fondly imagined his beaming face upon her. "You cook so well, Sakura," she envisioned him saying. "I would marry a girl with your expertise!"

Yeah, right.

The real Sasuke was just standing around the camp fire. Sakura wished she could pick his brain and understand what he was thinking; his expression was as unreadable as it was most of the time. Perhaps he was thinking of a problem, but Sakura didn't know what it was. She looked down and felt a bit depressed. She hugged her knees and stared at the soup. If only Sasuke could love her!

"Sakura." It was Sasuke's voice directly behind her. Sakura jumped and looked at him, him who she loved. She felt herself blush at the sight of him.

"Yes, Sasuke, what is it?" she asked, almost breathlessly. What could it be? What could Sasuke want from her? Her heart beat frantically in her chest as she dared hope of the possibilities.

"Hakudoshi and Kagura… what do you think of those two?"

So it had nothing to do with romance after all. Sakura's heart gave a loud thump and she slumped, feeling enervated. However, she tried to compose herself for Sasuke and answered as intelligently as possible.

"Well, they're strange. Kagura said she was Hakudoshi's sister although they look nothing alike! And their chakra feels funny."

"Do you think," said Sasuke, "They might try to double-cross us?" After finding out that Kagura and Hakudoshi were actually demons, he didn't think quite so much of them as he had before.

Sakura's eyes widened. "I never thought of that," she declared. "Maybe Kakashi-sensei suspects something too and that's why he refused Kagura's help."

Sasuke had already figured out as much. It was nice to see that Sakura could work things out as well; there was no use trying to talk to Naruto about it. He looked around and saw that Naruto had returned for lunch, probably because he had failed to find any ramen which he had declared he would find.

Naruto had found his ramen and eaten his fill of it; the single cup Kagome had given him settled satisfyingly in his stomach. But he was not satisfied, no. For some reason he could not help but ponder on his actions and what he had learned not long ago. Naruto rarely did think things through but when he did…

_Inuyasha is half a demon, _he thought. _He's like me. _He wondered whether Inuyasha had the same sort of life he did but dismissed the thought fiercely. He felt bad because he knew he shouldn't have been bonding with Kagome and Inuyasha, not when he was meant to kill them later. _I'm screwing up this mission, _he berated himself, yet somehow, he didn't _really _regret helping his enemies out. He felt as if he had done the right thing, in giving Inuyasha his Tetsusaiga back.

He wondered whether Sasuke and Sakura would be on his side if he explained what he really felt about the mission. He didn't know they were having their own doubts about the situation as well. Naruto would not have quit but he had his qualms; it all depended on what Kakashi wanted to do.

The answer came the very next second.

"We'll attack them at night. Since we haven't found out a way to combat Miroku's Wind Tunnel, just stay close to the targets, since he would probably be unwilling to hurt them." Kakashi's face was grim.

"Sensei, do we really have to go through with this?" Naruto frowned. "Why don't we just kick their butts in daytime?"

"You don't take foolish risks on a Ninja mission," Kakashi answered, sternly yet not patronisingly. He continued: "All of you! I can see you're having your doubts about this mission but unless you want to quit now, you don't try anything that could endanger the lives of you and your team mates. Understood?"

"Yes, Kakashi-sensei," his students responded without much enthusiasm.

"Good," said Kakashi, although his eye still looked cold. "Now get some rest so we can be fresh for tonight. We'll take it in turns keeping watch. Who's first?"

Sasuke raised his hands. "I am," he volunteered, and Kakashi nodded.

* * *

Later on, Kagome told Inuyasha about Naruto's Nine-Tailed Fox.

Inuyasha ate his Ninja Food and didn't say a word.

* * *

_You don't take foolish risks on a ninja mission._

Sasuke paced around the camp, kunai ready and drawn in case of danger. The world was lying still and sleeping, although it was still early afternoon. Sasuke was quick on his feet, circling like a hawk around his slumbering companions. Although his subconsciousness was working flat-out in sentry duties, he was thinking back to what Kakashi had said earlier.

_All of you! I can see you're having your doubts about this mission._

So he knew; he could see. Even Naruto seemed hesitant, and he was the one getting carried away most of the time. Maybe Kakashi was concerned about the team's emotional reaction to cold-blooded homicide; after all, that was what the mission was about. Maybe Sakura and Naruto would care, although Sasuke certainly didn't.

It was preparation for Itachi. Yes, that was the best way to look at it. Sasuke wanted to get used to killing so the idea of murdering his brother would seem more feasible, more justifiable to him. That was the way Sasuke's mind worked; Hakudoshi and Kagura were minor setbacks in his ultimate goal.

Speaking of Hakudoshi and Kagura…

Sasuke stiffened as he felt the presence of a very powerful chakra. Someone with considerable strength was coming, and this someone could only be heading to apprehend Sasuke and his companions.

**Preview**

Naruto: Who cares about threats from demons? We're going to kick Inuyasha's butt!

Inuyasha: Huh? You're going to attack us again? But you've saved Shippo's life…

Naruto: That was in the past. This is now.

Inuyasha: Get ready for an action-packed next chapter then!

Kagome: Next time in Target: Inuyasha: Second Attempt: Things start to heat up!


	4. Chapter 4

**Note on chakra and youki: **Youki is the term used in _InuYasha _to describe demonic energy. Chakra is the term used in _Naruto _to describe a Ninja's energy. The Nine-Tailed Fox's chakra was basically youki. So here, we see the link between chakra and youki: they are one and the same. Chakra, however, is a broad term that also encompasses Kagome and Kikyo's spiritual powers, so they have chakra levels too. I didn't think I could express this without breaking the flow of the chapter, since this is a very violent chapter. So the note here. Now enjoy the chapter.

**Second Attempt: Things start to heat up**

Kanna sat; her body still, her frail hands clutching at her mirror and holding it steady. Her eyes were blank and her face devoid of expression. She didn't turn as her younger sister, Kagura, entered the silhouetted room, although Naraku did. His malicious face regarded Kagura's angry one with mild curiosity. "What is it, Kagura?" he asked; his voice soft yet also threatening. The red eyes gleamed.

Kagura folded her fan and spoke: "Those Ninjas refused the help of the Saimyosho."

Naraku was silent for a moment, and then he said, "You will aid them with the Saimyosho anyway."

It was difficult to understand what thoughts ran through Naraku's mind. Kagura nodded and said, "Yes, Naraku." She could not conceal the frustration in her voice, however.

"Remember, Kagura, I hold your life in my hands." Naraku's voice was calm. He motioned to the ugly, still beating heart he kept close to hand. "Do not try anything… suspicious, or else I will deal with you."

Kagura refused to show fear. She narrowed her eyes, nodded, and then left the room. As she did, she noticed that Hakudoshi had been listening. She felt her anger rise, but she didn't say anything, for Naraku was watching her. His cold, piercing eyes were on her and even when she had left, she felt those same eyes still watching from afar.

Naraku turned his gaze on to Kanna's mirror. In spite of himself, he felt the corners of his mouth curl in satisfaction. "Sesshomaru," he said.

The demon in the mirror's reflection failed to respond, for he was far away, walking directly into the Ninjas' camp.

* * *

At last, the demon came into view. The breath caught in Sasuke's throat as he recognised the figure that was striding purposefully towards him.

It was the demon at the river yesterday and this time he didn't have his annoying companions with him. It was the first time Sasuke had taken a proper look at him and he was impressed by what he saw.

He was a beautiful demon. His long, silver hair, the two swords hanging by his side, his formidable gaze; all these things made the demon appear strong and deadly, two things Sasuke respected. Determined to halt the demon in his tracks, Sasuke jumped and landed in front of him, ready for a fight.

He searched his memory for a name: _Sesshomaru_. That was what that imp thing referred to him as. Sasuke watched the demon Sesshomaru halt, his arms lax by his side.

"Sesshomaru!" Sasuke called out to him. "State your business!"

Sasuke almost flinched when Sesshomaru's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Pathetic human," the demon uttered. "Do you wish to slay my half-brother?"

_Arrogant_, thought Sasuke, with a grimace. _He's like…_

Itachi.

The memory of the murderous glint of his own brother's Sharingan eyes almost made Sasuke shiver. But he stood his ground and sneered at Sesshomaru.

"Aww, are you concerned for Inuyasha?"

Sesshomaru's reply left Sasuke breathless:

"I wish to kill him myself."

_This guy_… Sasuke would have written him off as mad but he knew that he too would protect his brother if only to have the finishing blow later.

"Why?" Sasuke hadn't realised he was trembling until he heard the distinct note of fear lacerating his own voice. "Why do you wish to kill your half-brother?"

Sesshomaru merely looked at him.

"My motive is none of your concern," he said simply. "Only, be forewarned that if you try and kill Inuyasha, you will have to answer to me."

And then, with a swish of his beautiful hair, Sesshomaru turned on his heel and left in the direction he had come. Sasuke fell weakly to his knees.

_I have seen myself. Itachi has left me on my knees again._

* * *

"Rise and shine, everybody!" Kakashi hollered. He winked at the tired-looking Sakura and Naruto and at the completely alert Sasuke. "It's time to get going!"

Sakura nodded. Naruto quickly rubbed his eyes and grinned. Perhaps he was trying to convince himself that the terrible deed he was to commit was not really as terrible as he had thought earlier.

Sasuke wondered whether he should tell Kakashi about Sesshomaru's threat but decided against it. He was scared but he wasn't going to admit it, even to himself. If Sesshomaru was going to attack him, he'd fight back and pretend Sesshomaru was Itachi.

As usual, Naruto was the one with the most enthusiasm. "Let's give this mission our best shot! Believe it!"

And sometimes, Naruto was right.

* * *

Besides the appearance of Naruto, Inuyasha and his friends had had a very normal day. Sango had slapped Miroku, Shippo irritated Inuyasha, and Kagome said "sit." All this without any leads on Naraku or Akago. Needless to say, spirits were down.

The dying camp fire flickered around each sleeping face. Inuyasha was sitting leaning against ma tree. Kagome was in her sleeping bag, snuggling up with Shippo. Sango was snoozing with Kirara, and Miroku was alone in the corner of the light.

Kirara stirred; she had heard a noise. It was a Ninja whose stealth skills were not quite up to scratch. Kirara, having been living in a village of demon slayers for so long, could identify it readily. She growled and this woke up Sango. "What is it, Kirara?" the demon slayer murmured softly, expecting her pet to calm down soon. But to her surprise, Kirara refused to settle and growled again.

It was Inuyasha's turn to wake, he being a light sleeper. "It's the Ninjas," he declared. "I can smell Naruto's scent."

Miroku stirred and, seeing Inuyasha and Kirara so apprehensive, asked, "What is it?"

"Come on," said Inuyasha. "We've got to wake Kagome and Shippo up."

The clouds covering the waning moon moved on, illuminating the camp to a certain degree.

"Hiraikotsu!"

Sango hurled her boomerang over the forms of Kagome and Shippo, causing Kakashi to jump backwards in order to avoid a hit.

"Hey, you!" Inuyasha yelled, waving the Tetsusaiga. "You were trying to kill us in our sleep, weren't you?"

Kakashi didn't reply. He merely nodded and, on cue, Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura leaped down from a nearby tree, each holding a kunai knife. Sango, Inuyasha and Miroku gasped at the sight of them. Kirara growled again.

By this time Kagome and Shippo had woken. Shippo jumped to his feet. "It's Naruto!" he exclaimed.

"Naruto?" Kagome frowned. "Naruto, why are you attacking us again?"

Naruto looked at his feet. The disappointed look Kagome gave him only fuelled his feelings of guilt and hesitation.

"Naruto, you take Inuyasha; Sakura, you take Kagome; Sasuke, you take Sango. I'll fight Miroku." Kakashi had completely ignored what Kagome had said. He hoped the others would follow his lead.

They did. All three jumped into the trees again and then proceeded to attack their targets in their own ways.

"I'm sorry," Naruto said gruffly as he leaped towards Inuyasha. For a moment, his face was gloomy, and then he became focused. "Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

"Those things again," Inuyasha muttered, frowning. He drew the Tetsusaiga quickly and fiercely and used his sensitive ears to detect the presence of the Naruto clones. In his opinion, when it came to a fight, there was no time to waste on sentimentality.

Kagome ran towards Naruto, wanting to talk to him, wanting to convince him not to fight. But she had to stop when Sakura dropped in front of her, her brilliant green eyes shining with a desire to fight well.

"You're a girl like me!" Kagome cried, now feeling desperate. "We shouldn't be fighting!"

Sakura shook her head. Before leading them into the campsite, Kakashi had told his students that a target would say anything to avoid death and it was best not to listen to them. That had been his attempt to mollify the normally gormless Naruto. But Sakura had tuned in as well, thus her lack of hesitation when the time came.

And Kagome knew that a battle, at this stage of affairs, was unavoidable. She pulled out her bow and arrows and braced herself.

Sango held her Hiraikotsu ready. She looked around for Sasuke, knowing he would strike from any direction. To Sango's left, Kirara transformed and growled, causing Sango to swing around in that direction. It was a good thing too. Sasuke had thrown a kunai at her; at the hilt of the blade an explosive tag fluttered. Demon Slayers used the same explosive so Sango knew what to do. She swung the Hiraikotsu and knocked the kunai to the ground, then jumped on Kirara and flew away. As expected, the tag ignited and the explosion shook the ground.

Miroku covered his eyes, knowing he was in trouble. When the smoke cleared, he saw Kakashi standing before him and there was something unnerving about the sight of him indeed. His headband was pushed up, revealing his Sharingan eye. Miroku suppressed the urge to scream and reached for his Wind Tunnel. Unfortunately, a familiar buzzing noise alerted him to a new development for the worse. Naraku's poisonous insects meant that Miroku could not use his Wind Tunnel. And Kagura was also approaching the scene on her feather.

Kakashi looked up into the sky and cursed. "I told Kagura we didn't need her help. So why has she come?"

Miroku watched silently as Kagura landed gracefully on the ground. To him, the action confirmed his suspicion that Naraku and the Ninjas were in cahoots.

"Naraku ordered me to help you," Kagura explained. "My, my, Kakashi, you've got quite an eye there. I wonder what's under that mask of yours."

Kakashi frowned. _This Naraku… I still haven't met him directly. But he is quite a cool customer. He probably knows what the Saimyosho does to Ninjas and is making sure we don't do anything stupid like betray him. _He glanced at Miroku. _Enough stalling; I'm going to kill him now._

* * *

While Naraku was watching what went on through the eyes of his poisonous insects, Kanna went to visit Akago.

From his hiding place in the dark, Akago's eyes gleamed as he watched the battle through Kanna's mirror. Kanna was loyal to both Naraku and Akago for to her, the two were the same, only in separate forms.

Hakudoshi also watched Kanna and Akago. He wondered whether he could use the Ninjas, and Akago as well, to his advantage.

* * *

Jaken, Ah-un and Rin were sleeping. Sesshomaru had briefly checked up on them but he was gone now, his long fluffy tail creating soft friction and noise in the still night.

* * *

"Wind Scar!"

The Tetsusaiga rose and fell, and as it came crashing to the ground, a huge force of chakra, or demonic energy, generated. Naruto and his clones avoided the Wind Scar with a timely duck behind bushes, although the landscape suffered slightly with the capitulation of several trees.

Inuyasha looked around for Naruto, grimacing and scowling. His ears detected someone dashing towards him but it was too late to react. He felt the wind get knocked cleanly out of his stomach by some, no, several Naruto clones kicking him into the air. Fortunately, Inuyasha was a half-demon, so he could face the real Naruto in the air above him. He knew what Naruto was going to do out of intuition. He was going to kick him in the stomach and let him crash-land straight back down on earth.

As Naruto brought his foot down, Inuyasha brought his foot up and kicked Naruto first. He heard an "oof" sound but it sounded distant as Inuyasha back-flipped in order to land steadily on the ground.

With a heavy crash, Naruto fell on the forest floor. The corner of his mouth was bleeding. Inuyasha approached him, flexing his claws. "Too bad, kid," he said, smirking. He noticed that Naruto's clones had also vanished, meaning he had lost control of his technique.

"I'm not going to lose!" Naruto screamed and Inuyasha could see he meant it.

"Having trouble, little brother?"

Inuyasha swung around. He knew that calm, mocking voice from anywhere. "You!" he screeched.

It was Sesshomaru.

Meanwhile, Sango was confused to see that Sasuke hadn't aimed another attack at her. She spurred Kirara on and saw that Sasuke was pursuing Sesshomaru. She narrowed her gaze at Sesshomaru and wondered just when he had arrived to complicate things.

But before she could investigate, Sango heard Kagura's voice: "Dance of the Dragons!"

Wind, wind, wind; it was coming towards her with a force that could crush her. Mercifully, Kirara dodged the attack, and Sango threw her Hiraikotsu at Kagura. The wind witch raised her fan and simply blew the boomerang out of the way.

She smirked. "It will take more than that to defeat me!"

Sango frowned. "Fly lower, Kirara!" she ordered. Kirara obeyed and Sango drew her sword, which she rarely used. Kagura flinched horribly but she recovered the next second. Using her fan, she focused the wind on Sango and Kirara again.

It was simply too much for them. Hitting the ground, they feel unconscious. Down and out.

"Sango!" Miroku yelled, seeing his companion fall. He wanted to reach out for her but he couldn't, not when he was facing Kakashi, the Copy Ninja.

His own eyes widened as he spotted Kakashi right next to him. Then he saw black.

Kakashi's hand pulled back from the pressure points on Miroku's body. He wondered vaguely why he didn't choose to kill his opponent there and then. It was a decision that could, perhaps, cost him. Either way, he'd deal with Miroku later. He glanced up and tried to see how his students were doing.

Sakura was doing quite well. She had timed her Substitution Jutsu perfectly in order to avoid Kagome's arrow. She had then cut her enemy's bowstring with a well-aimed kunai, rendering Kagome virtually powerless. Now, Sakura turned her attention to Shippo.

Naruto was on the ground, which was typical of him. However, Inuyasha wasn't paying him much attention, judging by how his back was turned. He was gaping at Sasuke, who was squaring off with some newcomer, obviously not a target. The newcomer was clearly winning and he wasn't even using his swords at his side. Kakashi motioned forward to help.

And he felt the tug of Kagura's wind behind him. "Leave them be," she stated in a voice that brooked no arguments.

"Who is that person fighting Sasuke?" asked Kakashi. "His chakra levels are enormous."

"That is Sesshomaru," Kagura replied. "And if you try to fight him, you will die."

Kakashi wasn't sure whether this was a threat or a warning.

Sasuke was fighting, although his energy was deteriorating. _This guy is as good as I presumed, _he thought ruefully as he wiped a bit of blood from his mouth. He moved to dodge Sesshomaru's claws and tried throwing a couple of shuriken. Sesshomaru, however, carelessly tossed the weapons aside.

"Die, pathetic human," said Sesshomaru. And his left hand started to flow with chakra.

_I can match that, _Sasuke thought, thinking of his Chidori. But before he could use it, he heard a voice:

"Iron Reaver Soul Stealer!"

Sesshomaru turned to see Inuyasha attempting to rake him. Drawing his sword Tokijin, Sesshomaru fended off the attack and proceeded to punch at his half-brother, sending him hurtling backwards.

Inuyasha landed only a foot away from Naruto. The blonde Ninja seemed to have come to his senses, for he yelled, "I'll help you, Inuyasha! You tried to save Sasuke!"

It probably wasn't a coincidence that Naruto was stung by one of Naraku's poisonous insects a second after the words left this mouth.

**Preview**

Naruto: Ergh… I feel just like that time Neji hit all my Chakra points.

Inuyasha: And I've lost my Tetsusaiga!

Naruto: Looks like we've only got our demon forms now.

Inuyasha: Heh. Well, I'll probably win, then.

Naruto: Are you so sure?

Kagome: Next time in Target: Inuyasha: Fight in a Duel to the Death!


	5. Chapter 5

**Fight in a Duel to the Death**

Jaken gave a loud, almost bullish snore and fell off Ah-un's back. Either the grass was really soft or Jaken was a really heavy sleeper, for the imp demon didn't wake up.

Could someone be approaching Jaken? The noise sounded faint but it was definitely there. Someone's breathing was penetrating the air as the moon reached its height and began to take its downward descent.

Actually, Rin was a snorer too.

* * *

Shippo had been concerned about the outcome of Kagome and Sakura's fight the moment Sakura cut Kagome's bowstring. Kagome backed away, her eyes wide. Why had none of the villains before Sakura ever thought of cutting the bowstring whenever Kagome posed a threat? Now Kagome was unprepared.

And it was then Shippo knew he had to do something. Anything! He wouldn't be able to live with himself if he let Kagome die, like he let his father die. In spite of his usual cowardice, Shippo felt his resolve harden. "Fox Fire!" he yelled, throwing a heap of green, illusionary fire at Sakura.

Fox demons specialised in illusions and the Fox Fire was nothing more than a trick, but the victim felt a thrill in the first few seconds before it wore off. It was the same with Shippo's spin top and mushroom magic. Unfortunately for Shippo, Sakura had learned Genjutsu, the art of illusionary techniques at the Ninja academy and was not fooled by it at all. Deciding that fox magic was not as effective as verbal tricks, Shippo called out, "Look! A distraction!"

Sakura was not impressed.

"Well, that didn't work…" Shippo muttered. Then suddenly, he came up with a new idea. "Kagome, what's the name of that black-haired Ninja around Naruto's age?" he whispered.

Kagome told him.

"Look! Sasuke's in danger!" Shippo shouted urgently.

"Where? Where?" Sakura looked around frantically.

That was when Kagome hit her on the head with her bow. Just because the bowstring was snapped didn't mean the longbow wasn't an effective weapon. Sakura fell over, out like a light.

With Sakura dispatched, Shippo looked around to see what was happening. "Sango! Miroku!" He was suddenly apprehensive upon seeing two of his stronger companions fallen.

Kagome ran up to Sango, then Miroku, and checked their pulses. Concern spurred her to action.

"Are they okay?" Shippo asked.

"They've fainted," said Kakashi.

Kagome stood up. She looked at the masked shinobi, who had his eyes planted ahead. Even though it was obvious Kakashi had spoken to answer Shippo's question, he seemed more concerned about something else.

"What is it?" she asked.

"The blonde brat has been stung by one of Naraku's poisonous insects," Kagura answered.

Kakashi shot a glance at his "ally" and realised that she looked as surprised as any ignorant person. "You've no control over the poisonous insects?" he asked.

Kagura shook her head. "The wind is all I need."

_So Kagura is a pawn as well, _Kakashi thought to himself. He wondered whether there was anyone who knew the full extent of Naraku's plans.

Kakashi looked back towards Sasuke, Sesshomaru, Inuyasha and Naruto. Naraku's poisonous insects had moved on but had left Naruto behind. He looked pained and exhausted; Sesshomaru watched calmly on. Inuyasha looked shocked but Sasuke grimaced. He saw Sesshomaru walk over calmly to Inuyasha, whose expression was replaced by a look of anger.

"Enough," said Sesshomaru. "I will kill you, half-breed."

"You're fighting me!" Sasuke yelled. And he quickly focused all of his chakra into his right hand, holding on with his left hand for support. At once, his hand crackled with energy. Focusing harder, the energy took a solid form, like volts of electricity crackling. It was a blinding blue colour that made the shadows on Sasuke's face come alive. The Chidori pulsated and grew even larder until it came to a point where the Chakra did not seem to want to be compressed.

Kagura gasped, "What? What is that?"

_The Lightning Blade, Chidori, _Kakashi mentally answered. He looked at Sesshomaru, who had turned with an expressionless face to look at Sasuke. Naruto was watching on with a small smile, for he knew how powerful the Chidori was, which was so amazing to Inuyasha

Sasuke ran forward, the Chidori outstretched. Instantly, Sesshomaru turned his head and dodged, then grabbed Sasuke's hand in a malicious grip. Naruto gasped; Itachi had once evaded the Chidori the very same way.

And then Sesshomaru proceeded to beat Sasuke up in a manner also eerily similar to Itachi.

"Sasuke!" Naruto called out. He tried to perform a Jutsu to help his team mate out but found he couldn't; he simply had no energy. When he tried, he fell to his knees, feeling incredibly weak.

Kakashi was over in a flash. "Don't try to move," he advised. "Your entire Chakra Network has been blocked up."

Naruto suddenly remembered how Hinata had been hospitalised for days after Neji had blocked her network up. All the same-

"What about Sesshomaru?" Inuyasha demanded. Naruto looked at him. Inuyasha had taken the words right out of his mouth. What about the freaky guy with the long, girly hair?

Kakashi gave Inuyasha a very cold look. "Sesshomaru is not our target; you are. Therefore, dealing with you takes precedence." Inuyasha scowled.

By this time, Kagome had restrung her bow. She ran past Kagura, who was watching the scene with interest, and over towards Kakashi. "I won't let you kill Inuyasha!" she cried out. Kakashi and Naruto looked at her; Kakashi was frowning and Naruto looked uneasy, just as he had at the start of the battle. Inuyasha's face was an image of worry and concern.

Meanwhile, Sasuke could not withstand the battering Sesshomaru was giving him. He fought back in vain as he remembered fighting with Itachi the same way: the pain, the desire to win, and the utter hopelessness of it all. He felt increasingly frustrated, yet also increasingly cowed. Sesshomaru's moves were so fluid and effective; Sasuke could not find at opportunity to use Ninjutsu. He had to use the Sharingan! Yet before he could, Sesshomaru's fist had hit Sasuke on the side of his neck, knocking him out.

Sesshomaru raised his clawed hand once more, intending to use it to poison Sasuke and finish him off, but he halted when he heard a voice. It was not his imagination.

"Stop, Sesshomaru."

Kagura landed next to Sesshomaru and took hold of Sasuke's unconscious body. "There is no need, Sesshomaru," she uttered softly, meeting his eyes.

Sesshomaru backed away. He was not cowed by the woman's intentions, although he was curious to know what they were. "Why do you intend to save him?" he growled, his eyes narrowing.

Kagura smirked. "He is not a bad fighter. Besides, he isn't your enemy." _And_, she added to herself,_ Naraku would kill me if I let Sasuke die. _Sasuke, a useful pawn just like Kohaku, who would be used and then disposed of.

Sesshomaru didn't say anything. He gave Kagura one long, presumptuous glance and walked away. She was left holding Sasuke with a slightly bemused feeling. She frowned. Sesshomaru was as inscrutable as ever. Although she was surprised that he actually stopped fighting for her.

* * *

"I warn you! Back away!"

Kagome's voice was slightly higher-pitched than usual: she was pointing an arrow at Kakashi with earnest. Her mouth was open in concentration and she seemed to be using a lot of effort holding the bow still.

Then her target changed. She was now pointing her arrow at Inuyasha.

"Kagome…!" He was completely taken aback. Kagome's expression hadn't changed at all.

Naruto looked at Kakashi. He knew what his sensei was doing. It was a mind-control Jutsu! He was controlling Kagome so that she attacked Inuyasha. Clever. Kagome, under Kakashi's mind-control, shot an arrow. It was like the time Tsubaki had placed a curse on her, although Kakashi wasn't trying to be deliberately malicious, only resourceful. Inuyasha hadn't worked this out yet. As he tried to block Kagome's arrow with the Tetsusaiga, his weapon came flying out of his grasp. He turned to Kakashi with a look of pure fury on his face.

"You!" he spat. "You're controlling Kagome!" And then he ran at Kakashi with a rush of motivation.

Only to see Kagome shield Kakashi with her own body. Inuyasha stopped, for he could not hurt her, never could bring himself to harm Kagome.

Kakashi started his own flurry of attacks and Naruto watched Inuyasha silently. He knew, sooner or later, that without the Tetsusaiga, Inuyasha would go to his full-demon form – and he wasn't looking forward to it. He had to do something. He started to crawl forward.

"What are you doing?"

It was Shippo. He looked strangely tall to the grounded Naruto. His tail looked strangely big.

"Fox demon, you've got to give Inuyasha his Tetsusaiga," said Naruto.

"I can't," said Shippo.

Naruto just looked at him.

"It's just that…" Shippo looked away. "I'm a demon and I can't touch the sword 'cos there's a barrier around it. I'm sorry." He seemed genuinely apologetic. Naruto realised then that that he would have to retrieve the Tetsusaiga himself, even though he was so damn weak thanks to Naraku's poisonous insects. Kakashi wouldn't release control of his Jutsu over Kagome since he was trying to kill Inuyasha.

But if Inuyasha transformed, he would kill _everyone, _even Sasuke and Sakura, who couldn't fight back. Already, the tell-tale signs of transformation were appearing. The blue stripes were materialising, although they were still faint on Inuyasha's cheeks. Naruto knew he had to hurry. He tried to move but his body failed him. And then he knew that he had allergies to the Naraku's insects_. _The poison wasn't just blocking his Chakra Network; it was killing him.

At the thought of death, something within Naruto stirred, and he took this to be the Nine-Tailed Fox. He smiled, if only a little, and then he was racked with pain again. _Lend me your chakra, stupid fox! _He begged his inner demon.

He thought of the evil, glaring eyes of the beast behind the seal. He thought he heard some ironic laughter before feeling invigorated; the fox's chakra was overcoming the poison.

Shippo saw Naruto close his eyes and wondered whether he was dying. He drew closer and when he was almost touching the ninja, he saw Naruto open his eyes.

They were red; blood red. "Naruto has a demon form too!" Shippo wailed.

And that caught Kagura's attention. She came over to the frightened Shippo and saw what he had seen. Naruto scrambled over to the Tetsusaiga's buried hilt and pulled it out; his strength was admirable.

_A demon as well, huh? _Kagura thought. _These Ninjas have all got surprises._ Suddenly, she heard a small gasp from Kakashi. Turning around, Kagura saw that he was facing a full-demon Inuyasha. _He's got no chance, _Kagura thought with conviction.

Then she heard someone calling her. "Kagura! Why aren't you finishing off the monk and the slayer?" Hakudoshi had arrived and, although Kagura couldn't see him from behind the trees, she could feel his Naraku-like presence.

Kagura bit her lip disdainfully. "Why don't you do it?"

"I can't. I've got to find a new hide-out for Akago." Hakudoshi came into view and, true to his word; he was holding the baby Akago in his hands.

For a moment, it struck Kagura how alike they looked, Hakudoshi and Akago, but that was because they were twins. But then the situation at hand came to mind and she snapped, "Well! Get to it! I'll do what I can."

Shippo watched in despair as Hakudoshi left, knowing he didn't have the strength to take on Naraku's incarnation. He turned to Kagura, who was walking towards the bodies of Miroku and Sango in a rhythmic fashion. "Hey, what are you trying to do?" he demanded.

"I'm going to kill them," Kagura replied, with a cold look.

Shippo knew it was now or never. "I'll stop you!" he cried.

Meanwhile, Inuyasha, being in his full-demon form, was struck with a sudden fancy to tear at Kakashi until there was a blood bath. Kakashi tried everything: Genjutsu didn't seem to work on Inuyasha's one-track mind and Ninjutsu didn't seem to slow him down at all. Taijutsu was simply too risky, since Inuyasha's speed and strength had just about trebled. A Substitution Jutsu was a good diversion. With Kakashi vanishing, Inuyasha wanted to try his claws out on Kagome and see what would happen then.

Kagome, still under the influence of mind-control, did not seem to show any fear at all. Inuyasha didn't like that. He wanted her to scream in terror as he slowly ripped out her intestines, small _and _large. Then he'd rough up that pretty little face of hers until it was nothing but a bloody pulp.

If only she would scream!

Scowling, Inuyasha raised a claw.

And the Tetsusaiga landed neatly inside.

Naruto was terribly fatigued. All of the Demon Fox's energy had dissipated the moment he touched the Tetsusaiga's barrier and pulled the sword out. It had taken an immense amount of willpower to throw Tetsusaiga at Inuyasha. But it had been worth it.

Naruto was really tired. He closed his eyes and went to sleep with a sense of satisfaction and achievement. He didn't have the energy for much else.

Kakashi landed by Naruto and felt for a pulse. It was weak but it meant Naruto was alive. Knowing from Kagome's previous sentiments that she would probably do anything to save Naruto, he decided to reverse the mind-control Jutsu he had working on her. He figured she knew a way to save Naruto, since she was a priestess, or should be, if she used the bow and arrows.

"Kagome!" Inuyasha felt weak and groggy. "What happened?"

"I don't know," Kagome replied frankly. Her mind felt blank.

Kakashi's voice suddenly shook the two of them. "Naruto here saved your lives. Now can you cure him of the poison in his system?"

Kagome never hesitated. "Of course," she nodded and ran over to her bag, which was by her disrupted sleeping bag. Thankfully, nobody had touched the medicines she kept inside. Hurrying back to Naruto, she forced some liquid in his mouth and made him swallow. He made a slight groan, but otherwise, there was no reaction.

Kakashi breathed a sigh of relief. Then he turned his head towards Shippo and Kagura.

"You? Fight me? Ridiculous!" Kagura was remarking in a very confident sort of way.

Shippo frowned and looked at his paws. Then he glared at Kagura and jumped into the air. "Fox Fire!" he yelled.

Kagura blew the attack aside as if she was swatting a fly. "Whatever," she snorted. She raised her fan again.

And couldn't move it!

Paralysed with fear, Kagura could only look at the man who was holding her wrist.

"What are you doing?" The sheer joviality of Kakashi's voice could have been used were he asking what Kagura was doing on the weekend, but it certainly didn't suit the cold glare that went with it.

"I was trying to kill Miroku and Sango, your targets," Kagura snapped. Not that she really wanted to, but it had to look like she was doing something, otherwise Naraku wouldn't give her any more chances.

Kakashi's one eye continued to stare chillingly at her. "Tell Naraku that I don't appreciate you helping me," he said. "Tell him I said thanks and that the killing is our problem." His look hardened. "Your precious Naraku almost got my team mate killed. I might feel the need to withdraw the team and abort the mission if your master tries anything again. Got it?"

Kagura gulped and nodded, feeling as intimidated by this man as she did by Sesshomaru. Kakashi let go of her hand and watched her fly away. _Good riddance, _he thought.

He turned around. The campfire had died in the kafuffle and the moon was shrouded again by the clouds. But he still saw the unconscious bodies strewn around the place. There was Sango, Kirara, Miroku, Sasuke, Sakura and Naruto. Naruto was being attended to by Kagome, Inuyasha was watching her and Shippo was standing complaining about the cold.

And Kakashi thought: _Naraku started this entire mess._

"Inuyasha?" He walked over to the half-demon.

"Yes?" Inuyasha answered, half-expecting Kakashi to leap at him and start another fight.

Kakashi replied, "When my team mates wake up, I want you to tell me as much as you know about the man who hired me: Naraku."

**Preview**

Naruto: Hey, I don't like that Naraku guy. It's his fault I got poisoned!

Inuyasha: Then why don't you join us?

Naruto: I dunno. What does Kakashi-sensei think?

Inuyasha: I don't know either.

Kagome: Next time in Target: Inuyasha: The Truth about Naraku!


	6. Chapter 6

**Special Thanks: **Hey, it looks like I got myself another Beta Reader! Woohoo! So big thanks to **Clemency Lime **for editing this chapter. I'm hoping you notice a difference in quality, especially in how it flows, for my action scenes really are very choppy, I think.

**Note on the setting: **I should have written this in the first chapter but oh well. Since the two universes happen to co-exist in the same timeline, I'd like to clarify where in the series you are.

In _InuYasha_: Right after the anime ends, which is episode 167.

In _Naruto_: After the Chunin exams but before Sasuke leaves. I couldn't be bothered with leaving a specific episode number.

**The Truth about Naraku**

Naruto stirred and immediately felt like he had a hangover; he was almost completely drained of energy. With eyes opened to slits, he could see the vague outlines of Sasuke, Sakura, Miroku, Sango, and Kirara; they were stirring as well. Naruto sat up and clutched his head, staring straight into Shippo's green eyes.

"I'm glad you're awake," Shippo said plainly, then shuffled away so that Naruto could take in more of what was going on.

Inuyasha and Kagome had rekindled the fire; Kakashi was tending to Sasuke's wounds. It was almost, but not quite, dawn and Naruto was glad for the warmth the fire offered. He shivered—the wind was freezing!

Then his sixth-sense noticed something important.

"Kagome!" he shrieked. "I love you! You're cooking ramen!" Kagome tittered as she adjusted the placement of the pot over the fire. Inuyasha, who was standing with his arms folded imperiously under the sleeves of his robe, only snorted.

"You, a little shrimp, in love with Kagome? You remind me of that mangy wolf," he said, nastily referring to Koga.

Naruto grinned knowingly. "I can _see_ you're in love with Kagome, Inuyasha. Why don't you just come out and admit it?"

"That's what I always say," Shippo muttered.

Inuyasha looked furious. "Now you listen to me—" he began, his eyes glinting dangerously.

"Sit, boy!" As Inuyasha fell over, Kagome turned to Kakashi. "Are the others awake yet? I was thinking of giving everyone some noodles as a bit of refreshment," she explained, with a helpful smile. "I've also got some dried potatoes—"

"Yum," Inuyasha interjected, from the ground.

"—A packed lunch my mother gave me and a bit of my home cooking," Kagome finished. In more than one pair of eyes, she looked like a saint.

"I'm not sure that will be necessary…" Kakashi began.

"I'm hungry," Sakura declared, sitting up.

Sasuke didn't say anything but it was obvious that he was hungry too.

"All that fighting must have worked up quite an appetite in us," Kakashi noted. "All right then; pass over the food and talk about Naraku to your pleasure. We're listening."

* * *

In all actuality, Kagura was very afraid to return to Naraku in face of her failed task. However, her master would likely know what Kakashi had told her, so there was no need to fear, right? Right?

The wind blew the wrong way at Naraku's castle.

She wasn't too surprised to see him standing outside with Kanna beside him looking like his ridiculous, ghostly daughter. It was hard to think that such an air-brained child like Kanna was Kagura's older sister. To start, she looked like a ten-year-old.

Kagura sneered. "What is it, Naraku? You've heard what the Ninja had to say, so I'm excused, aren't I?"

"Wrong," Naraku said, and calmly he showed her the object that he had been holding in his fist.

It was Kagura's ugly, beating heart.

And he squeezed it.

Kagura immediately collapsed, clutching her chest in anguish. Naraku's face, his evil face, was jeering at her and she felt a rush of hatred directed at him. Her chest was constricted and her breathing was harsh.

"Damn you, Naraku," she wheezed when he finally let go.

Naraku stated, "Inuyasha and his friends are currently conversing with the Ninjas. No doubt they are gossiping about me."

If Kagura's still-throbbing chest wasn't such a painful reminder of Naraku's power over her, she would have spat in his face and told him that she was glad those Ninjas weren't willing to work for him any more. But she said nothing and kept her head down.

Naraku chuckled. "That _Kakashi_ seems to have a cool head. Will he listen to what his enemies have to say?" He left his question hanging; no one present could answer him. He turned and re-entered his castle, leaving Kanna and Kagura alone outside.

Kanna turned slowly, to follow Naraku, but Kagura caught her and turned her around roughly. "Kanna." Kagura frowned. "What do you think of Naraku?"

Her older sister blinked once. "He is our master; we must perform as he has dictated."

Kanna grunted in frustration; it figured that Kanna would say that—Brainless kid.

She didn't expect more, so she was surprised when Kanna stated in an even tone, "Kagura, you hate Naraku."

_It's like she's reading from a textbook, _Kagura thought and grimaced. Yet she sneered at Kanna. "Of course I hate Naraku. You would too, if you had any emotions." She was not in the mood for further chatter. Kagura stormed away from Kanna, leaving the pale child alone. She didn't hear Kanna's next words.

"Kagura, I also hate Naraku."

* * *

"So let me get this straight," Sakura said, looking from Inuyasha to Kagome. "After the bandit Onigumo sold his soul to the demons, he became Naraku. He transformed into Inuyasha and attacked the priestess Kikyo to obtain the Shikon no Tama she was purifying. Then he returned the Sacred Jewel and transformed into Kikyo, so he could get Inuyasha upset and taint the Jewel's purity."

"He had a lot of time on his hands," Naruto commented.

"_Anyway_," Sakura continued, ignoring Naruto. "Naraku didn't expect Kikyo to choose death over tainting the Jewel; so now, because of an accident with the jewel, he has to collect the shards one by one. Am I right?"

Miroku nodded. "Yes, you are. You're quite a shrewd kunoichi."

Sakura giggled and flushed with pleasure.

"May I ask you something?" Miroku went on, looking at Sakura seriously.

"Um… sure." Sakura blinked.

She was rather taken-aback when Miroku took her hand into his and gazed deeply into her puzzled green eyes. "Sakura, would you consider bearing my child?" he asked.

Every member of Team 7, including the normally stoic Sasuke, choked on their noodles.

And Miroku was answered with a hard slap to the face.

Sakura had been quicker than Sango, and her focus of chakra meant her slaps were even more painful than the furious demon slayer's. "Even Lee wouldn't ask me something dumb like that!" she yelled. "You pervert!"

While Miroku was being dragged off by Sango for a further punishment, Naruto began, "Hey Sakura, will you—"

"No!" Sakura yelled, hitting him smartly on the head.

"—pass me the Chilli sauce?" Naruto finished weakly.

Sakura blinked again. "Oh." Her voice was curt. "Sorry." She passed him the sauce.

Sasuke put aside his finished bowl of noodles and looked up at the giggling face of Kagome. "So is there anything else about Naraku? All you've talked about is what he did fifty years ago."

Kakashi glanced at Sasuke and silently commended him for his well-organized Shinobi mind. He looked back towards the other group and saw Sango frowning.

"Yes, there is one thing," she said, and a look of pain and recollection crossed her face. "Some months ago, Naraku was responsible for the destruction of my village. He called the demon slayers out on a mission and killed…every one of the villagers." She shuddered. "And he controlled my brother, Kohaku, to make him kill the slayers… and then to try and kill me."

"I can't imagine what that would have been like," Sakura said sympathetically.

Naruto glanced at Sasuke but his face wasn't visible because he had his noodle bowl up to his face and was swallowing the broth.

"You see," said Miroku, "Naraku enjoys playing with people's emotions. He wants the Jewel of Four Souls so he can become a full-demon and cause even more strife."

Inuyasha refrained from comment, but Shippo added, "He blew up Mount Hakurei, too!" Kirara mewed in agreement.

Kakashi frowned. "Isn't that a little cliqued?"

"What do you mean?" Kagome asked, blinking.

"The whole situation…" Kakashi explained. "Naraku is the bad guy and you are the good guys. Are you only saying this to convince us not to kill you?"

Everyone (excluding Sasuke) looked shocked by that. Naruto stuttered. "K-Kakashi-sensei!"

But Inuyasha sneered. "It doesn't matter what you think of us, we'd totally beat ya up even if ya did want to kill us. Like before."

"That was a draw, you know!" Sakura huffed. She was still bothered by how she had lost to Shippo and Kagome.

Sango only frowned. "Kakashi, you asked us to tell you about Naraku. We have."

Kakashi folded his arms. "A Shinobi doesn't trust anyone, not even his own employer." There was a long silence following Kakashi's words as everyone contemplated their meaning.

Then Naruto spoke up. "Well then, let's turn our back on Naraku and kick his butt!"

"What for?" asked Sasuke.

"Remember that mission when we went to the Land of Waves?" said Naruto. "And we met Haku and Zabuza? Well, after that mission I decided I didn't like the way that Shinobi have been used as tools, so I made up my own Ninja way where there would be no regrets." He grinned; the memory was still fresh in his mind. "If we quit without beating the bad guys, I wouldn't be following my Ninja way."

Kakashi seemed as if he were about to say something, but he only nodded and smiled. There was no point in arguing with Naruto once he had his mind set. _Sasuke_ was normally the person who contradicted Naruto's spur-of-the-moment schemes. But this time, he actually said, "You're right, Naruto." Then, before Naruto could get too excited, he added, "For once, loser."

Sakura nodded. "Yeah, it would be wrong not to chase after Naraku, especially after what he did to Sango." She looked genuinely affronted.

Kagome smiled. "Then it's settled! You're our personal Ninjas!"

Naruto's eyes sparkled and he laughed. "We won't let you down!" he said.

Inuyasha snorted and folded his arms. Miroku grinned and he put his arms around Sango, who promptly slapped him across the face. Naruto seemed to bounce off invisible walls; Shippo and Sakura both laughed their faces off at him. Even Sasuke was wearing a slight smile, and Kakashi's face (at least, what could be seen of it) was full of energy.

So began the tale of the alliance between the Ninjas and the Inuyasha gang. What would come of it?

* * *

As morning arrived and the world brightened, the light strengthened; with it did newly-born friendships. Sakura, Kagome, and Shippo were collecting herbs in the field eagerly. Sakura was there because Kagome was showing her which plants could cure the sting of Naraku's poisonous insects; Kagome had learnt the task of the priestess and her healing from Kaede. Shippo was there because his new crush just _happened_ to be Sakura. He called it his first love, but it was probably his tenth.

Sasuke and Sango were practicing their Taijutsu, the art of fighting hand-to-hand, in the forest. Sasuke had figured that if Naraku could stop him using Ninjutsu and Genjutsu, it was best to have a back-up plan. Also, Sango was not a very bad fighter at all. It was not like Sasuke to take to anyone very quickly, but Sango was different; although Sasuke hadn't told her about Itachi's similar connection, they had a mutual understanding of each other and respected one another's strength.

Miroku was flirting with the nearby village girls and _thoroughly_ enjoying himself. Naruto and Inuyasha were fighting over the last cup of ramen noodles.

It developed to be a fairly serene day. Kakashi investigated the surrounding countryside, which was rather easy on the eyes. He blinked, and then frowned slightly. He saw one of the beautiful cherry blossom trees rustle and from behind it emerge a someone who was not nearly as pretty.

Hakudoshi. The demon child seemed as if he were intent upon meeting Kakashi. "Well, well, have you decided to betray Naraku?" he asked, not bothering with a proper greeting.

Kakashi's eyes narrowed. The presence of Hakudoshi seemed to stain the peaceful atmosphere. "Although my team mates have decided for me, I am not quite decided yet," he stated.

Hakudoshi sneered. "Of course, you are the Jonin leader of Team 7; you wouldn't act without the proper information."

"I would like to meet Naraku," Kakashi said, his gaze fixed directly upon Hakudoshi.

"You would like to know whether he is as evil as Inuyasha and his friends made him out to be," Hakudoshi chuckled. "Well, of course he is, he is very evil. I, as his servant and offspring, say that."

Kakashi didn't reply immediately.

"But of course," Hakudoshi continued, his eyes twinkling, "You would still want to meet him. Naraku tells me he will meet you here, under the cherry blossom trees, the day after tomorrow. One more thing: he doesn't want your students there; he wants you alone."

Before Kakashi could ask any questions, Hakudoshi had left.

Kakashi pulled out _Make out Paradise _and started reading, although his mind wasn't really digesting the words. Suddenly he heard approaching footsteps and turned abruptly to face the newcomer.

Miroku halted in front of Kakashi, holding his staff upright. "There you are, Kakashi," he said, smiling faintly.

"I suppose you had fun in the village?" Kakashi replied evenly.

Miroku laughed. "No, actually; some of the old women in the village returned my favors." He drew closer to Kakashi. "What's that book you're reading?"

"This?" Kakashi smiled. "It's a book published in the Fire Country. I know the author personally."

Miroku took the novel out of Kakashi's hands and scanned a few pages. His eyes widened. "May I borrow this?" he asked.

"I've already read it, so sure, go ahead," Kakashi answered.

"Thanks," Miroku responded gleefully as he tucked the book within the folds of his robes.

Then Kakashi asked, "When do you plan to leave?"

"To chase after Naraku?" Miroku sobered. "Tomorrow, at the very latest. Actually, we're not looking for Naraku; we're looking for Akago, his incarnation. If we destroy the baby, Naraku will be conquerable."

"Oh?" Kakashi raised an eyebrow—this was news to him. With a nod, Miroku relayed the situation about Naraku's estranged heart.

"I see," said Kakashi. "Well, it seems, due to unforeseen circumstances, I shall be staying behind. I entrust my students to your care, although I guess they can manage themselves."

"All right," said Miroku. He nodded his head. "May I ask you something?"

"Go ahead," Kakashi told him.

Miroku glanced at the cherry blossom trees around them. He was done with the small talk. "Do you plan to gather more information, Kakashi?" Something about Kakashi's manner had been bothering him all day; it was as if he was troubled and his resolve undefined.

There was no point keeping it secret. Kakashi nodded. "A Shinobi must gather information from every source."

"Ah." Miroku looked down at the ground now. There was a sort of sad expression on his face. "Are all Ninjas merely tools, brought up with a set of rules to follow?"

It was the kind of question Kakashi's students had asked before. Kakashi looked away, unsure of the answer himself. "Ideally, that is how it is," he replied. "But aren't all Ninjas merely the tools of fate? We'll simply never know." He enjoyed talking with Miroku, for some inexplicable reason. The monk had the same intellectual depth as he did. It was like having another Jonin on the team that was _not_ Might Guy.

"Fate…" said Miroku reflectively. "I prefer to imagine that I am choosing my own destiny, insomuch that I will not pass on in the way my father and my grandfather did. Kakashi, I think you must trust yourself and not worry about fate. It's true that we'll never truly know."

Kakashi smiled. "For someone so lecherous, you're pretty smart, Miroku."

"Gah!" Miroku sniffed in a mock-tragic manner. "Even you think so!" And laughing, the two men returned to the others.

* * *

When Hakudoshi returned to Naraku's castle, he reported to Naraku all that was of good note. Naraku's soft, malicious laughter seemed to echo everywhere. Far-off, Kohaku shuddered and asked, "Hear that, Kagura?"

"Yes." Kagura shivered. "What a despicable person."

She looked at Kohaku. Sango's little brother was sitting cross-legged on the floor, sharpening his chain weapon. He had a calm, level-headed appearance which Kagura had begun to respect greatly as of late. They were rather like fellow conspirators.

"So Hakudoshi managed to find a new hiding place for Akago, and Naraku shall meet with one of the Ninjas the day after tomorrow…" Kohaku murmured. He seemed deep in thought.

Kagura nodded. "I wonder why Hakudoshi took so long to hide Akago, though. Is he planning something with him?"

Kohaku frowned. "I wouldn't put it past him," he said. "Hey, Kagura, what's the deal with the Ninjas?"

"Oh, they've betrayed Naraku."

"Oh?" Kohaku looked amused. Then he smiled. "Maybe hiring them was Naraku's fatal mistake."

Maybe indeed. Naraku had made many mistakes in the way of gaining allies; they all seemed to turn against him in the end.

**Preview**

Naruto: Finally, we're out to defeat Naraku!

Inuyasha: What's the deal with this village? Everyone's wearing masks; it's kind of creepy.

Naruto: We should check it out!

Inuyasha: But it's the night of the New Moon!

Naruto: Who cares? We're helping them! Believe it!

Kagome: Next time in Target: Inuyasha: An Infestation of Toad Demons!


	7. Chapter 7

**Cultural note: **In Japan, if you walk under the same umbrella with someone, it is a sign of intimacy.

**Note on the **_**Naruto **_**toads: **This chapter was meant to give a little further depth to the toad family of Konoha; as such, some of my facts are fanon, since I made them up. It would be prudent, however, to describe the two toads that appear in this chapter: Gamabunta (First appears briefly in episode 1); I have made him out to be chief but he's not really, just very big; Gamakichi (First appears episode 77): Cute little orange toad I decided to put in since I couldn't be bothered including Gamatatsu.

**An Infestation of Toad Demons**

On an ordinary day in feudal Japan, it was pouring rain.

Heavy footsteps moved towards a small home on the outskirts of a village. Mud splattered the hut as a shadowed man threw open the sliding door and ushered a woman inside. He followed, slamming the screen shut behind him.

His dark blue kimono was extremely damp after its exposure to the rain. The woman, who was dressed in plain traveling gear, didn't seem to mind wearing wet clothes, but she did shiver from the cold as she watched the man build a small fire.

"Thank you, sir." Her green eyes twinkled as she regarded her host. "But aren't you going to take off your disguise?"

The man turned his head. A white mask covered his entire face, leaving only slits for his rather beady eyes to peer through. He looked at the woman and shook his head.

"I cannot, for religious reasons. Tonight the villagers will celebrate the New Moon festival; we wear masks to honor our god."

The woman thought this custom rather strange, but she didn't say so; she settled herself instead and made an idle remark about her host's house. Unnervingly, the man continued to gaze at her and she grew uncomfortable. She had to speak. "Sir, is there something wrong?"

The man chuckled; it sounded strange and throaty, as if he were croaking. "You, my dear," he said, "Will make a fine sacrifice to our god."

The woman screamed.

* * *

"Why does it start raining just when we set out?" Naruto grumbled. His bright hair didn't seem quite so vibrant under the bleak downpour. "My bag's not water-proof!"

Kagome chided him, "Then why don't you come under the umbrella with Shippo and me?"

They were in the open fields and it was literally pouring. Kagome was holding a large, black umbrella with one hand and was steadying her own heavy bag over her right shoulder with the other. Shippo was occupying Kagome's left shoulder, glad that he wasn't getting wet like the idiot Inuyasha, who thought taking cover from the rain rather sissy. However, after Naruto stepped under Kagome's umbrella, Shippo turned his gaze around to the pretty female genin he had fallen in love with.

Sakura was walking under her own pretty pink umbrella. She turned her head in Shippo's direction, which caused the little Fox demon to blush furiously and bury his head in Kagome's hair. Kagome watched this with a very knowing expression. She was surprised, as a result, when Sakura walked around her and towards the male that she was really peeking at.

"Um… Sasuke?" she began a bit hesitantly, having noticing that her crush was walking without any covering from the elements. "Would you like to share an umbrella with me?"

Shippo could not believe his ears. _Sakura should be asking_ me _that! _He thought to himself furiously.

But Sasuke only replied simply, "Your umbrella is too small and frilly to cover two people efficiently." Sakura looked as if the world had as good as ended.

Sango, who had been walking in relative silence while carrying Kirara, suddenly pointed into the distance. "I see a village!" she declared in a relieved tone. Though she wore a hat to cover most of herself from the rain, her footsteps through the suddenly marsh-like field threw up a lot up mud; her skirts were soaked. At the thought of a village, her stride became dogged.

Speaking of dogs, Inuyasha snorted. "Well, we're not stopping there," he said.

"Why not?" Naruto asked, looking confused.

"Just because tonight's the night of the New Moon doesn't mean we can't take shelter!" Kagome argued huffily. "I, for one, wouldn't mind if Miroku performed a fake exorcism just so we could finally sleep in a bed!"

Miroku grinned; Sango glanced skyward.

"What's this about the night of the New Moon?" Sakura piped up. "As far as I'm concerned, it's just another night. What's so special about it?"

Shippo rushed to volunteer the information. "That's when Inuyasha loses his powers and becomes a human – and a pretty pathetic one at that! OUCH!"

As Shippo nursed the large bump he had obtained, Inuyasha folded his arms in a sulk. "So much for keeping my secret—some friends you are!"

Naruto frowned. "But we're your friends too, aren't we? If someone tries to hurt Inuyasha tonight, we'll beat them up. Isn't that right, Sasuke?" Sasuke ignored him.

"Whatever." Naruto wrinkled his nose. "You get the point."

Kagome beamed. "See, Inuyasha? We can trust the Ninjas!"

"Yeah," said Inuyasha, sarcasm heavy in his voice. "We can totally trust people that were out to kill us two days ago."

But they ended up visiting the village anyway.

* * *

The first thing the group noticed about the otherwise nondescript village was that everyone wore white masks—everywhere. And they did not seem to walk with any real purpose; they almost glided about, as if their traveling was just an afterthought. Whenever the group approached a villager to ask for directions or about the use of the masks, the person would edge away nervously and avoid an answer.

Yes, there was something eerie about the village. Something not right; a secret only partially concealed.

Fortunately, the inn was open, and though the innkeeper wore a mask himself, he was amiable enough.

"Since tonight's the night of the New Moon festival, I won't begrudge you with my normal fee," he informed the group, much to their delight. "How's half price?"

"Of course." Miroku was glad to agree and reached for the money he had earned from his many "exorcisms." "Excuse me, but could you tell me why the villagers wear their masks?" he probed (still holding the money in his grasp, in case what he learned caused them to regret spending any more time in the village).

The innkeeper must have noticed this; it was obvious that he was smiling behind his mask in a way that he was attempting to render as trustworthy. "Ah, these masks?" He laughed dismissively, and continued in an off-hand manner, "On the night of the New Moon, we celebrate a festival and sacrifice offerings to our god. We wear masks so that…" Suddenly, he grew serious. "Well, it angers our God if he can see our faces."

Inuyasha sniffed from where he was seated on the floor. "I bet it's just some jumped-up demon. I vote we move on, Miroku."

"If it's a demon, I want to see it!" Naruto insisted.

Miroku looked thoughtful. "Well…" The money wavered in his hand.

"We can always check out the festival," Sakura suggested. "And if there's a demon, we'll take it down. Some of us can go and some of us can stay at the inn." Sakura was an intelligent person with a good amount of common sense. Miroku listened to her: he handed over the money to the innkeeper, who pounced on it in his eagerness.

Shippo, who was on Naruto's shoulder, thought with a frown: _Those masks sure are freaky. _He wondered what was behind the one he was looking at. He looked to see if anyone else was sharing his thoughts but the others were merely grinning in relief at the idea of sheltering from the still heavy rain.

* * *

The woman was frightened. Fear was a thing that crept up on a person and then strangled them until they could barely stand their hammering heart. The woman certainly had more than a healthy dosage of it. She had been accosted, kidnapped, swiped – whatever name suited best – and now she was lying trussed up in the dark. Her only prospect was being sacrificed to some obscure God and that wasn't exactly a comforting thought.

So much for a simple pilgrimage to Mount Hakurei! She almost laughed through her choked, bitter tears. Now she knew why people didn't travel alone in Japan these days; what with the demons, religious extremists and heavy rain; no wonder women were locked indoors with only housework for entertainment.

Her name was Oboro, but more likely than not, she wasn't going to have a name much longer.

* * *

A surprisingly large mass of masked figures waited purposefully for Kagome, Sakura, Sango, Kirara, and Miroku; Sasuke, Naruto, Shippo, and Inuyasha were staying behind at the inn. The crowd was gathered in a circle around a large monument, which seemed to be a figure of stone. They seemed to be waiting for the newcomers specifically, for they were silent until they arrived. Then the buzz began.

In front of the monument lay another stone shape, and this one was carved like a basin. The rain had lightened to a dribble which improved vision immensely, but without the moon, things seemed darker than usual.

"It's like a pagan worshiping ceremony," Kagome breathed in awe, which was a rather ridiculous statement, since it _was _a pagan worshiping ceremony.

One of the masked figures (it was impossible to tell which, since they all looked so alike) clapped his hands and yelled, "All hail Gamayushi! Watch for the offering to be dunked in the water of eternal sleep!" His voice sounded passionate; he was really enthused by the sacrifice.

The crowd parted ways for the offering, and Kagome, Sango, and Sakura gasped. It was a woman, whose face was extremely pale, distinguishable in the darkness. She did not struggle, for she seemed too sick with fear and resignation to do so. Miroku frowned, and there and then it seemed clear that they would do all they could to help her.

"A human sacrifice…! That's just wrong," Sakura murmured. "When should we intervene?"

"When their 'god' appears," Sango replied. At that moment, the villagers began to swish around in frenzy, their masks reflecting nothing but pure darkness. "Gamayushi! Gamayushi! Gamayushi!" they chanted.

There was something distinctly horrific about the moment, and Miroku shivered. "Perhaps there is no god?" he suggested, a touch too lightly. The next second he was proved wrong. "Gamayushi" emerged from the monument, his spirit suddenly possessing it. The worshipers grew even more excited upon seeing him. The chanting had grown to a volume that was deafening.

Gamayushi was a toad demon.

* * *

_Idiots, _Sasuke thought as he watched Naruto, Shippo, and Inuyasha glare at him. He noticed Inuyasha's dog ears vanish, his nails shrink, and his hair turn black. Inuyasha must have noticed this too for he suddenly stopped and cursed.

"So that's your human form," Naruto commented. "Nice hair."

"This isn't funny!" Inuyasha fumed. He sighed with frustration and stared hatefully at his now weak hands. Sasuke was still watching. _If I wanted to kill Inuyasha, _he thought, _this would be the best time to do it. _Subconsciously, he fingered the hilt of his kunai.

At that moment, the innkeeper entered the room, causing everyone within to jump and look at him. Something had certainly changed, thought it wasn't the mask; he moved with a more malicious intent, and made a throaty chuckle. Sasuke frowned and Naruto looked completely bewildered.

"You will make the perfect sacrifice," the innkeeper chuckled. He reached out his hands.

CLANG!

Sasuke's kunai flew through the air and split the mask in two. The innkeeper clutched his face, but the mask had already slipped, revealing two bulging eyes and green, slimy skin.

"You're a toad demon!" Shippo cried in disgust, recoiling and hiding behind Inuyasha, who had already drawn the untransformed Tetsusaiga.

The toad demon croaked. "'Tis true," he said. "Our god, Gamayushi, placed a curse on all those born in this village so that on the night of the New Moon, we transform into toad demons. Unless we offer Gamayushi a sacrifice, we will not change back." He chuckled throatily. "So you will be offered as Gamayushi's next meal!"

"Yeah, as if," Naruto muttered. He pulled out a scroll from his pockets, bit his lip until it bled, and focused his chakra. "Summoning Jutsu!"

Gamakichi emerged from a thick veil of grey smoke. "What's up?" the little orange toad asked.

Inuyasha and Shippo stared. Naruto asked, "Gamakichi, if I wanted to annihilate you, how would I do it?"

"With fire," Gamakichi responded promptly. And then his eyes widened. "Hey, you're not implying something, are you?"

Naruto only looked up at Sasuke. "Go on, Sasuke!" he said, remembering how Sasuke had a few fire-based Jutsu's up his sleeve. Gamakichi moaned and whimpered as Sasuke brought his hand up to his mouth in order to focus his chakra. Inuyasha and Shippo watched in fascination.

"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!"

The toad demon screamed and threw up his arms; until the fire completely overwhelmed him and he gave a harsh croak of pure agony, which caused the onlookers to wince. Finally, only a pile of ashes remained. Shippo swept it up with his tail and said, "If all the villagers have morphed into demons, that must mean the others are in danger!"

"Good thinking, Shippo!" said Inuyasha, jumping onto his feet quickly. Never-mind that he was a human; he had to do what he could.

Naruto and Sasuke nodded and soon, the four of them had left. Gamakichi looked up and around and upon seeing that he was alone, gave a mighty wail and followed those who had departed.

* * *

Oboro gave a little squeal when she saw Gamayushi's hideous face. Unlike normal toad demons, Gamayushi was squat, hefty and _orange_. There were black markings around his eyes, which were not quite as wide as they could be. He had rather a repulsive, maniacal grin on his face and a deep, chilling, and throaty chuckle.

"I want to eat you," he said simply, leaning towards Oboro. His long, disgusting tongue licked his face with relish and his webbed hands were outstretched in glee.

"Hiraikotsu!"

Sango's boomerang was aimed expertly at Gamayushi. He frowned and drew a large broadsword at his side. The Hiraikotsu crashed against Gamayushi's sword with a loud clang. Sango narrowed her eyes. Then Gamayushi, with a loud grunt, applied pressure on his broadsword and reflected the Hiraikotsu straight back towards Sango. She shouted with dismay, frozen, as Miroku roared, "Sango!" He shoved her aside, knocking them both out of Hiraikotsu's range.

Meanwhile, Sakura had used her stealth skills to reach Oboro. Grabbing her hand, she quickly dragged her from the village and loosed her in the fields—urging her not to return.

Just then, Kagome screamed: "Look! The villagers are taking off their masks! They're all toad demons!" It was true. The white of the mask was replaced by the green, tinted flesh of a toad's. Things were definitely speeding up.

* * *

A panting Gamakichi yelled, "Look! It's Gamayushi!"

"Who's he?" Naruto asked.

Gamakichi explained, "One of my father's old colleagues. He was banished from our circle once he started eating humans. We never knew he ended up overseas!"

Now that gave Naruto an idea. "Time to summon the boss toad!" he grinned, and did just that.

The crowd was frantic to a degree that it was impossible to think clearly above the awful din. Since Oboro was gone, the congregated demons decided, without further ado, that the other humans that graced their presence were to be suitable replacements. The deafening noises could be distinguished as a perfectly in-time chant: "Sacrifice! Sacrifice!"

Kagome backed away, steadying her bow, knowing she could not take every demon on at once. Seeing this, Miroku called, "Get back, Kagome! I'm going to use my Wind Tunnel!"

Kagome, Sango, and Sakura all nodded and stepped back. The chanting became louder as Miroku stepped forward, boldly alone, to apprehend them. The suspense was numbing in effect.

But before Miroku could remove his beads, there was a very loud crashing noise that drowned out even the toad demons and, turning his head, Miroku's mouth opened wide. There was another toad demon nearby and this one rivaled Gamayushi in sheer size.

"This can't be good," Miroku muttered.

Sakura narrowed her eyes. The toadlooked like one of the toads that had signed an agreement to be summoned by the Leaf Ninjas. She read about them in the academy. _He can't be an enemy, can he? _Sakura frowned.

To her immense relief, she saw Sasuke coming towards her. "Sakura, what happened?" he demanded urgently.

"We're trying to stop Gamayushi, but he looks awfully strong," Sakura told him. "He reflected Sango's weapon with ease."

Sasuke looked up at Gamayushi. One of his eyes twitched comically. "He doesn't look very strong right now," he noted.

It was true. Gamayushi, upon noticing Gamabunta, cowered like Hinata did so constantly from Naruto. The great toad god had become a wuss!

Gamabunta removed a pipe—which was gigantic even for his size—from his mouth and said gruffly, "Gamayushi! So this is what you have been doing! Not that I'm surprised."

Gamayushi stuttered, "P-Please forgive me, Chief!"

Shippo stared. "This is the weirdest thing I have ever seen," he said.

It was about to get weirder. Gamabunta said, "I ain't your chief no more, whelp!" and Gamayushi cried, "Of course, of course!" All this was rather hasty and the toad actually started rubbing his webbed hands together, in an unctuous manner. Gamabunta snorted. "Don't get all slippery with me, whelp! You're despicable and deserve punishment for bringing shame to the toad family of Konoha!" He drew his sword.

Gamayushi could only squeak with terror before Gamabunta began his chase, deserting the village for the wide countryside.

The lively and no doubt entertaining descriptions of such an event could go on to no end, but the main story stopped there. Suffice it to say that there was a certain poetic justice to seeing Gamayushi's pompous manner be so completely flayed by Gamabunta, and the antics continued all the night, with grave consequences for the landscape. Gamayushi never bothered that village again, and with his presence diminished, every one of the villagers became human (and stayed that way).

Sakura complained afterwards that she never seemed to do anything in fights at all.

**Preview**

Naruto: I wonder what Kakashi-sensei was doing while we traveled with you?

Inuyasha: I don't know, but here he is now.

Naruto: Kakashi-sensei! Kakashi-sensei! Why aren't you helping us?

Inuyasha: Looks like we're in for another suspense-filled chapter.

Kagome: Next time, in Target: Inuyasha: Kakashi and Naraku join forces!


	8. Chapter 8

**Kakashi and Naraku Join Forces**

Morning arose with a lively radiance, smiling on the fresh dew of the day. The hour was brightening with such intensity that it promised to be quite a contrast to the previous rainy days. The open road seemed quite appealing in its gaiety, and nature's calling beckoned to all those with a sense of adventure and determination. The sun came gracefully at its own pace, drifting towards its zenith, and overhead, the birds sang cheerfully and flew freely and unbridled, slave only to their whim. Salty sea air blew in from the direction of the ocean.

It is said that the smell of the sea gives one a healthy appetite. And lunchtime had come.

"Ramen! Ramen, Ramen!" Naruto chanted insistently, invoking several sighs of annoyance from the surrounding group.

"Now that you mention it…" Sango said thoughtfully, "I'm slightly starving." She smiled. "Would you care to feed us, Kagome?"

Kagome giggled and agreed. As she set to work, Inuyasha snacked on the dried potatoes with Sakura, who maintained that Salt and Vinegar was her favourite flavour. Sasuke and Sango, waiting impatiently for the food, began an agitated conversation about battle diplomacy while Miroku nestled in the background, absorbed in the pages of _Make-out Paradise_.

Naruto soon approached him. "Hey," he exclaimed, loudly enough to get the Monk's attention. "That's Kakashi-sensei's book! When did you get it?"

Inuyasha made his way over and snatched it from Miroku's grasp. "What the hell does this mean?" he demanded. "_His kisses were like flames, setting her passion alight as his hands moved up and down her; stopping only to caress her most intimate of areas_?" He looked up. "It doesn't make sense!"

Sango, having heard the passage and looked up with obvious disapproval, separated herself from her argument to ask where he'd get such a book, and who would keep such trash.

"Kakashi-sensei," was Sakura's quick answer.

Shippo threw his hands up in dismay. "A lecherous Ninja! Now I have seen it all!"

Sasuke just sat calmly, but his mind was wandering from their dialogue. _I wonder what Kakashi has been doing that he couldn't include us. Why our presence would be a liability…and why hasn't he returned?_

* * *

One day ago, Kakashi, the Copy Ninja, had stood by the Cherry blossom trees waiting for his employer Naraku, the half-demon whose name literally meant _Hell_. To see his face, one would not have thought that Kakashi was very perturbed, but it was so. He was unsure of the tendencies of Naraku, and who his true character was, but planned to tell him that he had decided to withdraw from the mission. He simply did not want to kill Inuyasha and his friends after…and his team-mates felt the same; their attitudes were probably stronger—with deeper notions of obligation towards the group.

When Naraku appeared, it was dressed in his old baboon outfit in order to conceal his true features. A massive amount of chakra lifted off of him, though it was nowhere near as strong as that of the Nine-Tailed Fox's. Kakashi wondered immediately why Naraku didn't simply kill his enemies by his own hand. _He has the strength_.

Saimyosho hovered threateningly over Naraku's form, sending a clear forewarning: _We will poison you if you step out of place. _Kakashi was no fool.

"You've come," he said. His expression did not falter, nor did his eyes blink. "Naraku." He could swear the face under that baboon suit was smiling.

"I see you have obeyed my word and have not brought your students," Naraku said. He was so much like Hakudoshi only… more sinister. His voice was ironic, yet lacked warmth. "That was a wise gesture, Ninja. Are you not planning to betray me, Kakashi?" The Saimyosho's buzzing increased in volume.

Kakashi held firm. "I plan to withdraw from the mission and to quit our contract."

Naraku chuckled. "Is that so? Even while your students are in danger, you will leave the security of my partnership?"

With a flat voice of careful contempt, Kakashi asked, "What do you mean?"

"I suggest only that you might consider the scenario—suppose a tragic accident occurs while your students Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura are travelling with Inuyasha and his friends. You will have no help from me if you leave this agreement." Naraku's deep voice rang with dry concern.

Needless to say, Kakashi was alarmed at the man's behaviour, though he was not inclined to reveal any hesitation. He had met his fair share of villains in the past, although none of them had ever tried to use his students against him. Miroku was right when he said Naraku liked playing with people's emotions. At once, Kakashi felt a rush of hatred and disgust towards his employer; no contract could ever create a master-student relationship between Naraku and Kakashi as powerful as the one that he held with his own apprentices.

But likewise, Kakashi knew he could never hope to defeat someone as monstrous, as dominant as Naraku. Not alone. The Fourth Hokage had died sealing the Nine-tailed Fox away and Naraku had the potential to cause a lot of damage. Kakashi knew that to retreat was the best option, long before something irrevocable occurred.

He endeavoured to bluff. "I have the utmost faith in my students that they will be able to handle themselves."

"That may change," Naraku said, and that was his final word.

Things happened very quickly. The hidden body of Naraku exploded outward and grew to an impressive height, being propped up on rapidly growing and hideous tentacles. The tentacles shot out to entangle Kakashi, and half of the Saimyosho also came after him; the other half headed off in an easterly direction.

Fortunately, Kakashi had not been caught unprepared. Back-flipping away, he fended off Naraku's poisonous insects with a quick Barrier Jutsu. Then he was gone, chasing the wind, chasing the insects that had flown after his students. He was obliged to protect his students, and Miroku had told him that attacking Naraku's body with Akago and Hakudoshi running around would amount to nothing.

_All is vanity and a chasing after wind._

Miroku was right about a lot of things, despite his wrong mind. Kakashi was inclined to trust him over Naraku. He hoped he had made the right decision in that. Yet still, he knew he could not deceive Naraku.

* * *

"Psst! Sango! Do you think Sasuke likes you?" Kagome whispered to her friend, mid-walk, because there was not much better to do. (Of course, love was never a topic Kagome wasn't eager to gossip about.) The group was on foot again, Inuyasha and Naruto in the lead and Kagome and Sango bringing up the rear.

Sango looked up, hardly startled. "Not in the way you imply," she answered shortly, without a hair out of place. Kagome made a puzzled noise and gave her a questioning look, so she continued, "I don't think Sasuke is the type of person who would value love and I don't believe such a thing is ever on his mind. I think he talks to me because… because we have a…" She searched for the right words. "A common interest."

"What is it?" Kagome asked curiously.

The reply was concise and a little strained. "Naruto told me of Sasuke's family and his clan. They were slaughtered years ago by his elder brother, Itachi." A gasp from Kagome. Sango grimaced. "I want to rebuild my village like Sasuke wants to rebuild his clan."

Kagome fell silent for a moment, and then said, "But he has to marry someone to do that." She giggled privately. "I mean, to populate the world with little Uchihas, he has to find someone willing to bear his children, right?"

"But that's not love," Sango said softly. "That's necessity."

Now who had been secretly listening to Kagome and Sango's conversation the whole time? Miroku didn't speak and looked sharply away, wondering whether what Sango said had any implications for him.

At the front of the group, Inuyasha halted stiffly and sniffed the air. Naruto and Sakura both gave him a strange look but didn't question Inuyasha as he pointed skyward.

"Look," he growled, "it's the bastard's poisonous insects!"

Sure enough, the foul creatures were populating the area by the hundreds. Inexplicably, dark clouds also seemed to cover the otherwise fair skies. Inuyasha drew his Tetsusaiga.

"Oh, no!" Sakura squealed. "Those insects block our chakra. What do we do?"

Inuyasha didn't answer. "Wind Scar!" he roared, as he brought the Tetsusaiga down in a single, fluid motion. The Wind Scar soared upwards towards the poisonous insects, but the whole mass of them seemed to avoid the fatal strike with a deft manoeuvre. Inuyasha cursed.

"Look!" Kagome pointed. "They're carrying something!"

She was right. Everyone was too caught up to notice it, but the insects were using their combined strength to support the form of –

"Akago!" Shippo yelled, jumping onto Miroku's tense shoulder. He bit his lip in worry, for he suspected nothing good.

"_That's _Akago?!" Naruto demanded, staring at the purplish baby in shock. He couldn't see all of the baby's features exactly but what he could see was nothing like what he had imagined. He was told that Akago was Naraku's incarnation, so he expected some kind of hideous mutated creature.

In actuality, Akago was an almost perfectly normal, healthy baby with fat cheeks and a small body. Perhaps there was something very grown-up about his cool gaze, but other than that, he was quite orthodox. Naruto would easily have passed Akago by.

He ran up towards Akago and Naraku's poisonous insects, but Miroku grasped his hand. "Watch out," the monk declared warningly. "It could be a trap." Naruto nodded and stared unpleasantly at Akago.

Kagome pulled out her bow and arrows and shot one of her sacred arrows at Akago. This proved to be a futile strategy, as the insects carrying the infant merely swerved out of the way in the way they reacted to Inuyasha's Wind Scar. The same thing happened when Sango hurled her Hiraikotsu. Seeing this, Sakura turned to Miroku. "Why don't you use your Wind Tunnel?" she suggested, noticing that the monk had tried nothing.

"He can't," Shippo said. "Miroku will suck in the poisonous insects and fall ill. It has happened before."

"You better not try anything, Miroku!" Inuyasha called out. "Or I'll chop your damn arm off!" He was glaring hatefully at Akago and the Saimyosho.

"Please," said Sango tightly, "Don't do anything." Miroku nodded.

Meanwhile, some of the insects had made a dive directly towards Sakura. She screamed and ducked for cover, not wanting to get stung, and it was at that moment that a collapsing tree shook Naraku's poisonous insects and caused them to halt momentarily. The tree had fallen without any obvious tilt; it was strong and healthy and fell on its own accord. Needless to say, everyone (except Sasuke, of course) was shocked. Sasuke figured that maybe a Jutsu had caused this phenomenon.

He was right.

"Why, hello, Sakura. Nice to see you're doing so well there." Kakashi appeared, like he always did when he was late, seemingly out of thin air.

Shippo's jaw fell to Miroku's ankles.

"Nice to see _you've_ finally arrived." Sasuke smirked and inclined his head towards the dangerously buzzing insects. "What are you going to do about them?"

Kakashi lazily turned his head towards the insects. If the insects had teeth, they would have been gnashing them. Akago was giving Kakashi a very blank stare.

There was a brief spell of silence, in which each person present had their own thoughts. Kakashi was thinking about how best to wipe out the poisonous insects. Kagome was thinking about how cool he was, especially from his appearance. Miroku, Sango, and Shippo were wondering what he was going to do. And Inuyasha was being an ass and thinking Kakashi was being a show-off, like that jerk Sesshomaru or that mangy wolf Koga.

Then the insects attacked. Kakashi made a slight shuffle and jumped into the air, making hand signs. A moment later, the ground erupted and the insects were caked with mud. It clipped their wings and dragged them to the ground. They buzzed weakly, but no more after Kakashi sent an exploding kunai towards them. The sound was deafening and the force quite real. Those close by were forced to shut their eyes.

When the smoke cleared, Inuyasha ran forward and demanded, "Where's Akago?" but Kakashi was already sifting through the insect remnants. Eventually, he pulled out a bit of wood from among the wreckage.

It was shaped like a little wooden manikin. Miroku sucked in air through his teeth. "It was just a demon puppet!" he exclaimed. Kakashi nodded his head sadly.

Naruto was confused…again. "A demon puppet? Like the ones Kankuro uses?"

"Similar," Kakashi replied, "Although Naraku watched us through that puppet." Sakura bit her lip in dismay.

* * *

In Naraku's squalid castle, the lord of the place watched in silence as the manikin on the table simply split right apart. He chuckled. "So you have made the wrong choice after all, Kakashi."

* * *

Words could not describe Naruto's utter delight upon seeing his sensei save the day. Kakashi was now standing casually ahead of them on the road, looking at least as cool as Sasuke. The clouds had moved on, allowing the large treeless area in which Naraku's poisonous insects lay motionless. An explosion having taken place, the area looked bare and ugly. Although this signified a good thing, in Naruto's opinion.

"Kakashi-sensei!" he yelled joyfully. "You've come to help us beat Naraku!"

Kakashi laughed in response, although something about him seemed falsely cheerful. Stopping his laugh too abruptly, Kakashi took a step towards Naruto. "On the contrary, Naruto, I suggested to Naraku that we abort the mission."

Naruto cocked his head. "What does that mean?" he asked.

"He means," Sakura hissed, "To give up."

Hearing this, Naruto frowned. "Kakashi-sensei, you can't be serious! No way can we give up!"

Inuyasha and the others were silent. Only a few furtive glances betrayed their unease.

Kakashi replied, "To betray your employer is a serious and risky action. I didn't realise the extent of it until I spoke to Naraku." His voice became softer. "You see, he is… dangerous. We have a right to quit but not to betray. If every Ninja acted on conscience alone, a lot of important missions simply wouldn't get done."

"No!" Naruto shouted. "That's against my Nindo, my Ninja way!"

Kakashi could see Naruto was quite firm on his decision from his expression alone. He sighed. Naruto had to learn that a Shinobi had to detach his feelings on a mission, not to let his judgements be clouded. It was such a terrible pity that this was one thing Naruto refused to learn.

And then, to Kakashi's unending dismay, Sasuke stated, "We are enough to handle this. Only tell me, Kakashi, what did Naraku say to you?"

"He threatened to kill all three of you," Kakashi answered simply.

Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura were stunned. Then Sakura said, "Then we stop Naraku! If he wants to double-cross us like that then…"

Kakashi interrupted her. "It's only natural Naraku would threaten that. After all, we double-crossed him first."

As the argument went on, Kagome felt increasingly tense and harried. Both sides had a point. Naruto and the others wanted to vanquish the bad guy, simply because it was the right thing to do. But Kakashi didn't want to continue milking a situation that was already sour. Technically, backing out before things took another turn for the worse was the smart thing to do.

Kagome glanced at her friends. Sango, Miroku and Shippo were grim-faced. Inuyasha was frowning. Kagome bit her lip with worry as Inuyasha stepped towards the Ninjas in order to intervene.

"It doesn't matter what you do, because we're still going to bust up Naraku," he said confidently. Kagome knew this was Inuyasha's way of advising Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura to go with Kakashi.

"NO!" Naruto insisted. He couldn't… he just couldn't….Letting Naraku go unpunished was just so, so wrong. Naruto could not stand such injustice! "Kakashi-sensei! I am going to defeat Naraku!" Another reason Naruto refused to relent was because he liked Kagome; kind Kagome who had given him a chance, _not _like that piece of turd Naraku!

Sighing, Kakashi turned to see Sakura and Sasuke. Hopefully, they could be swayed. "Sakura? Sasuke? What are you going to do?"

To everyone's surprise, Sakura answered firmly, "I think Naruto's right!"

"So do I," Sasuke added.

For a moment, something akin to pride and sadness shone in Kakashi's eyes. Then it was replaced by a look of cool indifference. "You'll change your mind over time," he said.

He stalked away, leaving a stunned group staring wide-eyed after him. Sakura felt as if her heart had plummeted fifty metres. She couldn't move a muscle as she watched Kakashi leave. "He's… gone…" she murmured.

Sasuke closed his eyes, frowning. Nobody knew what he was thinking. Sango looked on and felt a similar wave of pity for him, and for Sakura and Naruto.

Naruto was devastated. He hadn't expected Kakashi to simply relent and leave. Things wouldn't be the same without his guidance and quirky presence. To his credit, Naruto's resolve did not falter even as he watched his friend and mentor turn his back on him. But he could not suppress a terrible feeling of misunderstanding and helplessness that coursed through him, for it was his fault, really, that he refused to listen.

Inuyasha cast his eyes downward, filled with sympathy. He knew what Sasuke, Sakura, and Naruto were going through from his own experiences, and he murmured a single word to himself as he turned his head aside: "Kikyo." His own feelings were still horribly strong inside him.

Sakura's lip quivered. Kagome watched with regretful eyes as the Kunoichi began yelled hoarsely, "Kakashi-sensei! Kakashi-sensei!" She choked and rubbed furiously at blurring eyes, moaning, "_Kakashi-sensei_!"

There was no response.

* * *

A stifling silence stained the atmosphere as Kakashi walked quietly down the road. Even alone, Kakashi refused to let any emotion seep through his mask. His shoulders were thrown back, his head up straight. No person would have thought how clenched, how painfully tight, Kakashi felt inside.

He inclined his head as he felt the approaching presence of a familiar person. _Kagura. _Halting, Kakashi peered at the woman who was now apprehending him at the side of the road. There was one of two poisonous insects trailing behind her.

"What will you do, Kakashi?" she asked. "Now that you have betrayed Naraku?"

_What will I do? _The words repeated themselves in his head. Kakashi looked up and straight into Kagura's eyes. "I have not betrayed Naraku," he said. His voice sounded as remote and unfamiliar as he wished it to. But that still burned. "Tell him I shall carry out the mission with all my power."

Kagura's eyes registered shock, but Kakashi only felt a strong resolve.

_I will protect my students with my life._

**Preview**

Inuyasha: I guess you will have to find someone to replace Kakashi, huh?

Naruto: Heh! Don't worry. What about your friend, Koga?

Inuyasha: 1) The mangy wolf isn't my friend and 2) Isn't he being attacked by Kanna, Hakudoshi and Moryomaru?

Naruto: Well, then, let's go save him.

Kagome: Next time in Target: Inuyasha: Searching for the Fourth Member!


	9. Chapter 9

**Revision history: **30/3/08:Just sent this chapter to my Beta reader and got it back! This chapter has been edited. One passage has been altered for clarity.

* * *

Relative silence reigned in that deserted clearing where Moryomaru slept. The sheer, rugged cliff face sheltered the body of the perfect demon from the elements. There was no grass where Moryomaru rested. If he opened his eyes, he would not be able to see the stars through the thick canopy of trees that also surrounded him.

Moryomaru was not actually dormant. He did not need to sleep; he was pretending so he might strike any predators unaware. Beside him, crouched by his disfigured body, the baby Akago slept, looking peaceful and serene in his deep slumber. His soft snores were unbelievably natural.

As the wind gently blew through the trees, almost silent footsteps approached Akago and Moryomaru. With a slight growl, Moryomaru opened his eyes and saw Hakudoshi and Kanna peering down at him. He did not say anything; he was not intelligent enough, yet, but he watched in puzzled silence as Hakudoshi motioned towards Akago.

"Kanna," Hakudoshi said, "are you ready to seal Akago inside Moryomaru?"

Kanna nodded mutely.

**Searching for the Fourth Member**

Kagome watched Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura, and felt a pang in her chest. She knew things had changed among the three; everything had become a lot graver in nature. Darn it; she was concerned for her friends!

"It's a tough feeling," said Miroku, "losing someone you love." He was speaking from personal experience, thinking of his deceased father.

Kagome looked at the ground and nodded.

Sakura sighed for the umpteenth time. It was then a shadow fell across her and she turned to see who was standing behind her. "Oh, Inuyasha!" she exclaimed.

"Hey," Inuyasha said gruffly. He sat down by the three young genin. Clearing his throat, he announced, "If you want to get over losing your teacher, find a replacement."

The three stared. "Huh?"

Looking uncomfortable, he continued, "If you have a replacement, you'll get 'ta feeling better about it and you'll… get over it more quickly."

"Are you talking about Kikyo?" Sakura remarked. Listening, she remembered that she had heard the whole fun-doodle about Inuyasha and Kikyo not too long ago. "And is Kagome the replacement?"

Recalling much to his shame that Kagome had asked at various times the same thing, Inuyasha blushed, folded his arms underneath his robes, and snorted, "Feh! That doesn't matter! Do you get my point?"

"You're saying that we should find someone to replace Kakashi?" Sasuke replied, in calm acceptance.

The hanyou looked immensely relieved. "Yes. Do that!"

With his first true smile since Kakashi's departure, Naruto insisted, "We will if you say so. Believe it!"

* * *

It came to pass that eventually Koga, Ginta, and Hakkaku, the three last members of the Wolf Tribe, went looking for the demon babe Akago. Their intentions were obvious. That day, the leader, Koga, seemed particularly anxious—for no apparent reason. His attitude quickly rubbed off on Ginta and Hakkaku, and much to their dismay, they had no notion why. They only hurried onwards behind their leader with a haste that belied their easy-going natures.

"I wonder where Koga's going," Ginta wondered, directing his comment to the one person who would listen.

Hakkaku shrugged and he quickened his pace. Gazing not at Ginta but at the harried Koga, he said, "Who knows? Koga's been in a hurry ever since our tribe's been destroyed."

They passed streams, forests, mountains, meadows, villages – they travelled everywhere. As Ginta claimed at one point, "It's not like we have any real home to lose."

Hours into it, Koga halted, sniffed the air with a sudden fervour, and said, "Smell that?"

Ginta and Hakkaku obliged. "It's Akago!" they cried in unison.

Koga nodded. "It seems the barrier around him has been taken down. But we have no idea how long until it comes back up again. We've got to hurry!"

That provided a definite sense of urgency, and Ginta and Hakkaku were largely comforted in knowing the reason why they were made to run as fast as they could after their rapidly disappearing leader.

There was a sense of a burdening weight being lifted when Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura took their leave. There were no hard feelings, only the separation spelled the coming of new times, new challenges. Of course, there was some remorse: Shippo waved shyly to Sakura and turned his face away so his crush would not be able to see his despairing look; Sango nodded to Sasuke, and Sasuke actually smiled back.

The biggest indication of the mood was when Kagome drew Naruto into a fierce hug, kissed the metal plate of his headband and told him, "Make sure you don't eat all the ramen I've given you too quickly!"

And when they were gone, Kagome wiped a tear from her eyes and murmured, "Naruto's such a cute kid."

Inuyasha frowned.

"I mean," Kagome continued, smiling, "he's become so much like a little brother to me in such a short space of time."

Inuyasha's gaze softened. "I think so too," he said, assessing how much Naruto meant to him already.

Shippo blushed slightly. He being not far behind Inuyasha and Kagome, on Sango's worthy shoulder. He proclaimed, "I hope Sakura's going to be okay."

"She'll be fine," Sango shrugged. "As will Sasuke, I hope." She'd become rather fond of the young Shinobi.

Miroku smiled with warmth. "I pray good luck to them all, and I hope they find a new sensei soon." There could be no denying the sincerity of his earnestly-spoken words.

* * *

Hakudoshi watched silently and with glittering eyes as Kanna began to fulfil her chosen purpose. First, she took Akago into her pale, ghostly hands. There was a silence, broken only by Moryomaru's breathing, which was slightly heavier than usual. Kanna walked slowly towards Moryomaru, and then she placed Akago inside him.

It was as if Akago had simply gone through Moryomaru. Kanna's hands entered Moryomaru as if he was not solid. There was a flash of light and Kanna's hands glowed with a supreme, supernatural radiance; she pulled away in absolute calm.

Akago was no longer in her hands.

But just then Hakudoshi heard a small noise on the cliffs above him. Narrowing his eyes, he turned his head sharply upwards and caught a slight movement among the bushes. It was certainly not the wind.

_Hmm… _Hakudoshi considered. A slight smile tugged on his lips as he guessed who was spying on him.

Koga, Ginta, and Hakkaku were gazing with silent horror as Kanna sealed Akago inside Moryomaru. Now Akago's protection had increased by much; Moryomaru could never be separated from him unless Moryomaru himself died or Kanna lifted the seal. Neither of these things could be accomplished on a whim.

And of course, the whole process of defeating Naraku was not about to get easier when Hakudoshi turned his sinister head towards the bush that Koga, Ginta, and Hakkaku were hiding behind. An evil smirk was planted on his face.

The incarnation's voice was doubly soft and menacing. "Won't you come out there?"

* * *

Sakura had always suspected that there were two sides to her. The first side was that of a perfectly healthy-minded girl. It told her Sasuke was the one she must like, how she ought to dress, and so on. But there was the other one, the Inner.

It spoke to her. It told her constantly, "I am your real self. That other personality you have is just a phoney. You're trying to cover yourself up but you can't get away from me!"

Sakura always suppressed her Inner, thinking it was a sign of madness. Sasuke would never love her if she were crazy! Inner said, _Pfeh! Whatever!_

Today, her Inner was lecturing her: "You'll never find someone to replace Kakashi-sensei! Seriously, do you see any other Ninjas that could offer any support? I'll give you eleven seconds. One, two, three, four, five, six-"

_Shut up_, Sakura thought irritably.

She looked up at her travelling companions, who were walking only a few paces ahead of her. No one was talking. Team 7 wasn't known for its communication. Sakura sighed.

"Sasuke, is there something you need?" she asked, hoping he would answer in the affirmative.

"No," said Sasuke curtly.

"Oh." Sakura was disappointed.

Naruto grunted, "Why are you so interested in Sasuke? Geez, shouldn't we be talking about Naraku-turd?" Naraku-turd was Naraku's newest dubbed name, according to Naruto.

"What is there about him to discuss?" asked Sasuke quietly.

Naruto considered for a moment. "Well," he said finally, "why don't we talk about what we would do if we met Naraku? I'd personally kick him where the sun don't shine."

_Same here_, Inner agreed voraciously.

"I'm sure that wouldn't be necessary, Naruto," Sakura said, sighing at his immaturity.

"You," Naruto retorted, "don't seem to hate Naraku yet." He snorted. "But wasn't it his fault that Kakashi-sensei's missing? Geez!"

_No_, Inner corrected, _it was our fault_. Sakura didn't say anything and looked at her toes. Naruto frowned but didn't say anything. He was too busy thinking about how much Naraku deserved injury to care overmuch about whatever Sakura was thinking.

Sasuke, Naruto, and Sakura had now arrived near the edge of a sheer cliff. Bushes had completely surrounded them, but the grass seemed to fade and the bushes seemed to thin as the path ran on. The three of them were walking with the edge of the cliff parallel to their left. The almost bare moon could be seen illuminating the dark, leafy forest below the cliff's face. The sounds of the night could not be heard clearly for some reason, and there was a silence that was eerie, indicating the clam before the storm. Sasuke was keenly aware of this and wondered what was going to happen next.

It didn't take long to find out.

There was the sound of someone's belligerent yelling: "What have you done to Akago, Hakudoshi? I swear, if you're plotting something again…!"

Hakudoshi's voice: "I'm pretty sure my actions have indicated that I have, indeed, found a better hiding place for Akago inside Moryomaru."

"Why, you!"

As the voices continued, Naruto glanced at Sasuke and Sakura to see their reactions. To his consternation, he discovered that the two had already rushed on ahead, having heard enough evidence that the two keys to Naraku's heart were indeed close by.

He shouted, "Hey, wait for me! I'm not missing out on this!" And proceeded to run the extra metres down the path to where the action was taking place.

* * *

Ginta and Hakkaku were very much frightened of what might come of the encounter between Koga and Hakudoshi. Their leader's recklessness had gotten them all into some tight scrapes in the past, and having two of Naraku's incarnations as well as Moryomaru in the picture was simply an invitation for major conflict. Ginta and Hakkaku were worried.

Moryomaru lay sloth-like on the ground, Kanna beside him. As Hakudoshi and Koga were talking, Ginta and Hakkaku saw Kanna step silently onto one of Moryomaru's arms. They watched with mute bewilderment as Moryomaru's arm seemed to stretch. As it did, it became dark and thorny. Kanna, being perfectly balanced, was elevated to the top of the cliff without any stir or worry and she stepped off Moryomaru's arm and onto Ginta and Hakkaku's level. Moryomaru's arm reverted to its original attributes as she did so.

Koga, being Koga, had not noticed one little bit of Moryomaru's actions. He was now fixing Hakudoshi with an insolent stare and saying, "Well, I'll just kill two birds with one stone. Bust up Moryomaru and Akago is defeated. It's simple!"

The smirk that came to Hakudoshi's face upon hearing Koga's brash words quickly diverted into a scowl as Sasuke and Naruto appeared behind the wolf-demon. "It's you," he spat. "The Ninjas." The tone of his voice was mocking.

Sasuke looked at Hakudoshi with a smirk that could have rivalled said demon incarnation's cockiness earlier. Naruto grinned and fiddled with his headband. Koga just said, "Do I know you?"

Now, as this was taking place, Sakura had approached Ginta and Hakkaku and quickly explained all they needed to know. "Are you chasing after Akago too?" she queried.

"Yeah," said Ginta. "I'm Ginta, he's Hakkaku and that there's Koga, the leader of the Demon Wolf Tribe."

"We want to defeat Naraku because he destroyed our tribe," Hakkaku explained.

_Seems that Naraku kicks butt wherever he goes_, Inner said.

Sakura said, "That's really terrible. Sasuke and Naruto over there, as well as myself, are going to help you, okay? You just see about that!"

The wind blew softly as if in response to her words. Sakura immediately sensed that someone was behind her, and turned around with the full intent of showing her metal. But she stopped, stared at who it was, and frowned.

Kanna?

* * *

"It seems," Naraku chuckled softly, "that Kanna and Hakudoshi have given me the slip." Not that he, situated comfortably in his room within his foul castle, could bring himself to investigate the matter personally.

He was understandably relieved to see the door slide open and Kagura enter the scene.

"Ah, Kagura," he exclaimed. "I have a job for you."

"What is it?" Kagura asked warily, knowing that Naraku liked to give her the dangerous jobs in the hopes that she would perish following his orders.

Naraku chuckled again; "No need to be so tiresome. This is my last job for you. Find out where Moryomaru is and report to me what you find out. If you see Hakudoshi and Kanna, inform them that I wish to speak with them."

Something about what Naraku had said about a 'last job' made Kagura feel uneasy. Nonetheless, she snapped, "All right, I'll do it," and walked ungraciously out of the room.

Naraku chuckled for a third time. Then he directed his next question towards the youth who was sitting unobtrusively in the corner. "Are you going too, Kohaku?"

"Yes, Master Naraku," Kohaku responded as he got to his feet. His eyes were listless and dull.

* * *

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Naruto yelled, performing the hand sign necessary for the technique. As he did so, the clones appeared behind him, causing Koga's eyes to quite literally pop out of its sockets.

"Now how did you do that?" he demanded.

Naruto grinned and replied, "Never mind!" Then he turned to Hakudoshi. "You're going down!"

As he was making this confident declaration, Moryomaru had performed the uncomfortable job of snagging both Sasuke and Koga with his nifty arm trick. Needless to say, Sasuke and Koga were not feeling at home upon suddenly experiencing the sensation of being crushed by Moryomaru's arms.

"Sasuke! Mr Wolf!" Naruto shouted with evident concern. He turned back to Hakudoshi with the intention of finishing him off quickly.

Hakudoshi's face was calm as Naruto's clones rushed him all at once. "Heh." When he was sliced into ribbons, he didn't seem to care, although that did not mean he was beyond caring. He regenerated in a manner only he himself only properly understood, and which left Naruto and the clones to ogle at him. "Don't you get it? My heart is not inside my body," Hakudoshi explained patronisingly; "I can regenerate myself as much as I please."

_Crap_, Naruto thought. _He's immortal?!_

Meanwhile, Moryomaru tightened his grip on Sasuke and Koga. One could almost feel the excruciating pain they felt just from looking at their expressions.

Now, during this time, what had Sakura been doing? "Who's she?" she asked Ginta and Hakkaku as she pointed at Kanna.

They both shrugged. "She doesn't fight much, but she's Naraku's incarnation," they replied.

_Naraku's incarnation…_ Sakura thought, narrowing her eyes. Reaching for a kunai, she tossed it at Kanna experimentally. To her surprise, Kanna stood stock-still, but her mirror glowed. The kunai halted in midair, as if it had hit something solid.

Then it went flying back towards Sakura!

Luckily, her Ninja reflexes saved her. Ducking to avoid the hit, she was still shocked how Kanna had caused her kunai to rebound with only a mirror. She turned her head to Ginta and Hakkaku to ask them for advice, and she saw them standing perfectly still, as if they were statues. "What are you doing?" she demanded, but just then, she saw something white and flowing ebb out of Ginta and Hakkaku's chests and into Kanna's mirror. She had no idea what was going on but, staring into Kanna's mirror, she felt her own knees grow weak. Her reflection, as well as Kanna, was staring at her in a disconcerting manner; Sakura didn't like it at all.

_I think your soul is leaving you_, Inner said.

_Oh… no…_ Sakura thought. She collapsed, with Ginta and Hakkaku crumpling beside her.

It really wasn't a very good situation. Naruto was fighting someone who couldn't be killed; Sasuke and Koga were currently having their spines broken; and Sakura, Ginta, and Hakkaku had lost their souls. Talk about a bad day.

**Preview**

Koga: What are you going to do to help us?

Naruto: I don't know, but Kagura and Kohaku are coming. Maybe they can help.

Koga: They'd better. Hey, what's Sakura doing fighting if she's lost her soul?

Naruto: It's like that time Ino used the Mind Transfer Jutsu on her and she resisted.

Koga: Get ready for an action-packed next chapter then!

Kagome: Next time in Target: Inuyasha! "Sakura's Second Soul!"


	10. Chapter 10

Hi, I almost forgot it was my day of posting today. I haven't written anything new for this story all week; it's all about my other fic, The Bones of Seven Men. It's not as popular as this story, but the idea kept bugging me so I had to give it precedence to _Target: Inuyasha_. I'm so sorry! Now here we go!

**Recap:**

_Hakudoshi watched silently and with glittering eyes as Kanna began to fulfil her chosen purpose. First, she took Akago into her pale, ghostly hands. There was a silence, broken only by Moryomaru's breathing, which was slightly heavier than usual. Kanna walked slowly towards Moryomaru, and then she placed Akago inside him._

* * *

_Koga, being Koga, had not noticed one little bit of Moryomaru's actions. He was now fixing Hakudoshi with an insolent stare and saying, "Well, I'll just kill two birds with one stone. Bust up Moryomaru and Akago is defeated. It's simple!"_

_The smirk that came to Hakudoshi's face upon hearing Koga's brash words quickly diverted into a scowl as Sasuke and Naruto appeared behind the wolf-demon. "It's you," he spat. "The Ninjas." The tone of his voice was mocking._

* * *

_It really wasn't a very good situation. Naruto was fighting someone who couldn't be killed; Sasuke and Koga were currently having their spines broken; and Sakura, Ginta, and Hakkaku had lost their souls. Talk about a bad day._

**Sakura's Second Soul**

The harsh wind blew strongly on Kagura and Kohaku's faces as they flew purposefully through the night sky. Kagura looked down at Kohaku's blank face and called out his name. That seemed to stir the young boy, and as he woke out of his daze he gasped, startled to find that he was on Kagura's feather. He nearly lost his balance and fell, but Kagura caught him in time.

Without waiting for any words of gratitude from Kohaku, Kagura launched into an explanation of her job and voiced her suspicions: "I think Hakudoshi has involved Kanna in his whole plotting with Akago thing, presuming those two are in cahoots."

Kohaku frowned. "If Kanna is plotting," he stated, "don't you think now would be a good time to turn against Naraku?"

Kagura nodded. "Yes, but I think we should make sure, just in case, what Hakudoshi and Kanna are doing. Also, whether or not they would consider helping us."

"Okay," said Kohaku as he scanned the landscape urgently for any signs of Hakudoshi and Kanna. In his mind he was thinking out the possibilities and, examining his bleak situation, he thought he might be beginning to see the light of hope glimmer.

* * *

Upon looking around and discovering that not only was Koga and Sasuke in peril, but that Sakura, Ginta and Hakkaku were in trouble too, Naruto yelled in a hoarsely, "Sakura!"

But he had to turn his attention to Hakudoshi and avoid a strike from his halberd. The situation was grim; Naruto had to fend for himself—he couldn't watch the other's backs.

Sasuke had come to the calm realization that he was suffocating in Moryomaru's grip, and that he seriously needed to get himself out of this unpleasant situation. With a glance downwards, he saw that Moryomaru had lifted him into the air, locking his arms in front of him. Feeling the breath being squeezed out of his lungs, Sasuke hurriedly set to work trying to perform a Jutsu. It was tough, given the circumstances, but desperation spurred him on, and his hands flitted through the hand signs necessary for liberty.

Just then, Moryomaru turned his head to the side to see whether or not Sasuke had been crushed yet, and immediately heard an ominous crack sound from the boy's direction. He snarled when he saw the source of the noise was only large a tree branch. Sasuke had used the Substitution Jutsu!

Koga, who was grimacing in pain, opened a previously screwed shut eyelid and witnessed this phenomenon. He gasped in relief when Moryomaru let him go. Moryomaru was hunting among the branches of the nearby tree for Sasuke and had forgotten all about Koga. This was without doubt a good thing. But Koga, being a headstrong fool, was determined to make his own impression on Moryomaru. "Face me, you cretin!" He spoke in a vehement tone, bringing his feet up to perform a kick.

While that was going on, Kanna was further back, staring at Sakura, Ginta and Hakkaku's bodies. Her mirror was very luminous it seemed, though she was inactive, that she was the first spotted by Kohaku and Kagura in the sky above. Kohaku pointed down at her and yelled, "They're there!"

The wind blew the feather that he and Kagura were riding down, towards the pale child. Kanna noticed this and said, in her infuriatingly toneless voice, "Kagura, Kohaku, you come."

Landing on the ground, Kagura scowled at her sister and said, "Kanna, what are you doing here?"

Kohaku bit his lip and looked around. There was no hint of Akago anywhere, although there was quite a dosage of violence occurring nonetheless. Kohaku couldn't help but notice what Kanna had done to Sakura, Ginta and Hakkaku, but he said nothing, letting Kagura do all the talking.

Kagura demanded, "Where is Akago, Kanna?"

"I sealed him," Kanna said.

"Where?" Kagura asked sharply.

"In Moryomaru," was Kanna's reply.

Kagura was starting to get frustrated with Kanna. She wasn't being rude but her long silences followed by short, dreamy replies simply got on Kagura's nerves. But before she could lose her temper, something happened that made her turn around in shock and Kohaku narrow his eyes.

Sakura had gotten to her feet, although her head was still down. Kanna stared at her, wondering how she could do that when the mirror had stolen her soul. _Is she like Kagome? Does she have a very large soul? _She shook her head. _No, it is not a soul sustaining her… it's something else._

Inner Sakura had been very pleased in taking possession of the body since she was normally shoved into the corner of Sakura's mind. Lifting Sakura's head and splitting her face into a devious grin, Inner said, "Time for the party to begin!"

_How can this be? _Kagura thought incredulously. Her lips parted but no sound came out.

Hakudoshi caught a glimpse of Kagura in the midst of fighting. He scowled and, in a very displeasured voice, said, "Kagura." Ducking to avoid a punch from Naruto, Hakudoshi made his way towards Kagura and asked roughly, "How did you come to be here?"

Kagura was about to explain when Kohaku cried out, "Look!"

Everyone, including Koga, Moryomaru, Sasuke and Naruto, turned to see what Kohaku was pointing at.

Sakura had rushed at Kanna, who stood motionless, apparently unaware of the imminent danger. Kagura gasped but did nothing; Hakudoshi, the same. Only Moryomaru performed an act of charity towards Kanna, placing himself between her and Sakura.

"Out of my way, you ugly mug!" Sakura shrieked, and, as hundreds of spears started to protrude from Moryomaru's body, she rammed through the obstacle and sank her teeth into Moryomaru's neck.

The pain both must have felt, Sakura from being impaled by spears and Moryomaru from Sakura's suddenly vicious strength, was immense. Sakura was bleeding liberally and her eyes were streaming with gut-wrenching tears; but her gaze only reflected an overpowering desire to fight, and this sentiment even the savage Moryomaru could not return.

Sasuke, who was up a tree gazing down at Sakura and Moryomaru's tussle, gasped, "I never realised that Sakura…!" He left the sentence hanging; he did not know how he could finish it.

"She's stronger than she looks," Koga said as Sakura snarled and started crushing Moryomaru's spears with the strength of her limbs. She wasted no words on boasting or explaining her methods and only pulled back an arm and screamed in bloodlust as she punched Moryomaru directly in the face. Moryomaru scowled as he collapsed; Sakura paid him no more heed and continued her rampage towards Kanna.

Kanna stood, attempting vainly to activate the mirror's effect on Sakura. Nothing happened, so Kanna's mind began to wonder, _Am I about to die? Maybe it wouldn't be so bad. _She blinked calmly. _I am void; my life is meaningless._

Naruto was completely flabbergasted upon witnessing Kanna's reaction to Sakura's surprising show of power. And he, as well as the others watching were doubly surprised at what occurred in the next part of the tale.

Instead of aiming for Kanna's neck, Sakura reached out and prised the mirror loose from Kanna's weak grip. Then, holding the mirror tightly with her left hand, Sakura pulled her right arm back in preparation of a crushing palm strike.

"I don't get it," said Hakudoshi. "Kanna's an expert with barriers. How did she let that girl touch her mirror?" Widening his eyes, he wondered aloud, "Did Kanna just attempt suicide?!"

Kanna almost seemed disappointed when Sakura shattered the mirror with an effortless show of taijutsu. From the shards of the broken mirror, there shone brightly the three souls of Sakura, Ginta and Hakkaku. The souls did not linger and were only briefly seen as they filled the three bodies they had departed from.

"Wow," said Koga.

Sakura blinked and shook her head, as if snapping out of something. "Wha... what happened?" she asked, gazing at Kanna, then at Hakudoshi, then at Moryomaru's sprawled form. _You kicked butt, that's what, _Inner told her excitedly.

Kagura and Kohaku both simply stared at Sakura then glanced at each other. "I'm sick of this," the felled Moryomaru growled. "I'm leaving." They were his first words for the night. The fact that he could speak was probably attributed to Akago's presence inside of him.

Koga could only stare in disbelief as Moryomaru retracted his spikes and shuffled away into the woods. He had met Moryomaru before and the demon was quite strong, so possibly, he was upset at having been beaten by a girl. Ginta and Hakkaku, who were looking around, yelling bewilderedly, "What's up? What's going on?" hadn't noticed a thing.

Hakudoshi didn't seem to favour the arrangements. "Moryomaru!" he snarled. "Wait up!"

"What were you doing with Moryomaru and Kanna, Hakudoshi?" Kohaku asked evenly. Hakudoshi turned to him and scowled.

"I got Kanna to seal Akago inside Moryomaru for his protection, okay?" he explained irritably. "Now leave me." He gave Kohaku no choice, for he ran off in Moryomaru's direction.

"It seems," said Kohaku softly, "that Moryomaru is developing a desire for vengeance which is overpowering his call to do as Hakudoshi says."

"Who are you?" Naruto demanded bluntly, pointing his finger rudely at Kohaku. Sakura blinked and Inner asked the same thing, although Sakura didn't speak up.

Kohaku stuttered, "I-I'm Kohaku." For a moment, he looked quite docile, so much like a little brother.

_Sango's little brother._

When Sasuke had been travelling with Sango, he had heard her speak of that brother she loved, despite what he had done to and what heartache his prolonged existence caused her. And Sasuke, looking into Kohaku's eyes, thought of Sango and felt an urge to help her.

"Won't you go back to your sister?" he asked in a voice uncharacteristically tender. "Why don't you go see Sango?"

Sakura gave Sasuke an odd, furtive glance, and then stared at her feet.

"No," Kohaku said. "I'm still... Naraku is…"

"Listen," said Kagura, effectively cutting off Kohaku. "Kohaku and I plan to turn against Naraku, and only when he's gone, we'll think about the future. Would you help us?" She glanced at Sasuke, Naruto and Sakura; her voice was almost pleading.

Koga stepped forward. "If you're against Naraku, we'll help you," spoke the man whose tribe Kagura had slaughtered under Naraku's orders.

Kagura regarded him lazily. "Thank you," she said. Then she turned to Kohaku. "Come on, Kohaku, we've got to get Kanna back to Naraku."

As Kagura, Kohaku and Kanna departed, Sakura realised that, underneath her pride and mockery, Kagura was a soul as desperate as Kanna. She was truly not the person she made herself out to be. She was strong-willed, but she showed concern for others, namely Kohaku.

"Of course we'll help you, Kagura," she whispered, and her voice echoed softly in the wind.

* * *

Deep, deep, deep into the dark, dark foliage Moryomaru dove into, hiding himself from the wan moon. He crushed twigs and rocks with his heavy, disfigured body and snarled liberally, causing the forest to silence itself for Moryomaru's approval. Stepping into a clearing, Moryomaru halted and, turning, he caught sight of Hakudoshi running to catch up to him.

"Come here, Hakudoshi," he said.

Propped up against a firm tree branch, Kikyo the priestess had been resting languidly in peace. But as soon as her subconsciousness felt the presence of Moryomaru, her eyes flickered open and she turned her head towards the clearing. She said nothing, only watched intently as Hakudoshi walked to Moryomaru's side. These were her enemies she was looking on, and she did not want to ruin a good opportunity to learn something.

"What did you want to speak about, Moryomaru?" asked Hakudoshi inertly.

"Kanna," Moryomaru answered simply. "It's in her power to lift the seal at any moment, so do you think it is wise to keep her alive?"

"Yes," said Hakudoshi. "Naraku thinks that Kanna is his most faithful sentinel, so she can do more for us yet, other than hide Akago inside of you."

Kikyo narrowed her eyes.

Moryomaru chuckled softly. "Soon, Naraku will be taken down and we shall rule in his stead. But there is something I want to do first."

"What is it, Moryomaru?" Hakudoshi inquired, although it seemed to Kikyo that he already had an idea from his expression what Moryomaru's request was going to be.

"I'm going to kill that pink-haired bitch," Moryomaru replied, scowling in a very threatening manner.

Hakudoshi seemed to know who Moryomaru was referring to, since he didn't ask any more questions. He only said, "It's such a pity those interfering Ninjas came in." He sighed. "You can have your wish, Moryomaru."

Moryomaru grinned.

"I'll return to Naraku and inform his as to what has happened tonight," Hakudoshi said after a long pause. With that, he set off back in the direction of Naraku's castle. Moryomaru settled into the middle of the clearing to think. Kikyo peered intently at him, and then she turned and left. Something significant had occurred that night and it didn't sound good for her.

* * *

"Now who are you guys?" Koga demanded of Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura. "I've never seen any of you before."

"We're from overseas," Sakura explained hastily. "I'm Sakura, that's Naruto and this is Sasuke. You're Koga, right? Ginta and Hakkaku told me about you."

"Oh, right!" said Koga, laughing.

Sasuke was of the opinion that Koga could be trusted. He seemed to be a dependable leader, in any case, and that lead to Sasuke's next thought about him, which he voiced aloud.

"We need a leader to replace the former Jonin of our team, Kakashi Hatake. Koga, you're against Naraku; will you join Team 7?"

Upon hearing Sasuke's words, Koga's mouth opened slightly. For a moment, he looked indecisive, and then he nodded and spoke earnestly: "Why not? You're Ninjas; we can do some damage."

The implication of Koga's conceptualising hit home on Ginta and Hakkaku and they whined, from their position in the sophisticated background, "Hey, Koga, what about us?"

What about us indeed! Koga bowed his head briefly. When he turned his head back towards his comrades, a firm line had set on his mouth. "You guys have to go home, back to the mountains," he told them seriously. "It's gotten much too dangerous now for you, what with Akago inside Moryomaru. Besides, you'll slow us down."

_At least Koga's honest, _Ginta and Hakkaku thought, slightly ruefully. Glancing at Koga's legs, they thought about the two Sacred Jewel shards embedded there and wished that they too could have a share of Koga's power. But, knowing there was nothing they could do concerning their leader's decision-making, they only nodded and said, "All right, Koga. We'll see you around."

Koga, at this point, could not contain his emotion. This could be the last time he would see Ginta and Hakkaku, the two who had stayed by his side through thick and thin. To him, the two were his family who he loved dearly. "Take care of yourselves," he whispered, and he embraced Ginta and Hakkaku in a fierce hug.

"We will, Koga," Ginta said when the hug had ended.

"Good luck defeating Naraku!" yelled Hakkaku, waving.

Ginta and Hakkaku left, cheerfully saying goodbye to their leader Koga. And Koga was smiling fondly at them.

All this time, Naruto had been scratching his head with bemusement at the touching scene. When Ginta and Hakkaku had left, he asked, "What was that about, Koga-sensei?"

"Sensei?" Koga answered question with question, flashing Naruto an odd look.

"Well, yeah!" said Naruto, smiling. "You're our sensei now, you know!"

Koga had never been addressed as 'sensei' before, but somehow, the term sounded good to his ears. "Why, thank you," he said, grinning. "And this team shall be called Team Koga after your handsome leader," he added. Sakura giggled.

"Then we'll defeat Naraku together, shall we?" Sasuke said.

He was smiling.

* * *

As Kagura, Kohaku and Kanna returned to Naraku's castle, they found that not only had Hakudoshi gotten back before them, but Naraku was in deep conversation with Kakashi. After telling Kagura that he would continue working for Naraku, Kakashi had gone to Naraku and explained to him that, because his students would get in the way, he could not attack Inuyasha and his friends again.

Naraku had supplied: "Why don't you attack Kikyo instead?"

Naraku despised Kikyo. The part of him that was Onigumo had not allowed him to touch her, but even after expelling his human heart, Kikyo had proved too wily for Naraku to exterminate. He was a demon and she was a priestess; she still had powers over him. But Kakashi was human and a Ninja at that. He should have no trouble killing Kikyo. Perhaps the whole hiring thing had not been such an unpleasant idea.

Hanging around Naraku was more than a bad experience for Kakashi; it was like being with sin itself. Kakashi had not a temperament to be spooked, but even he could not help but feel mortified by his surroundings. He did not know how much more of it he could take, but he knew it had to end it soon.

As he left Naraku's presence, Kakashi saw Kagura enter the room. For a moment, their eyes connected, and Kagura turned away. There was a lot about Kakashi she didn't know, quite a bit, in fact. She knew he was with Naraku to protect his students, but not how faithful he was or whether he would ultimately be an obstacle to her freedom. He intrigued her as much as Sesshomaru had initially, but this interest which had spurred her to fall in love with Sesshomaru (an action she almost regretted) was not really shared by Kakashi. She knew he was a prospective enemy, but Sesshomaru was instead somewhere in-between. That was what made the difference in her mind.

"Kagura," whispered Kohaku suddenly. "I think Naraku knows what we plan to do and what Hakudoshi plans to do."

"How?" asked Kagura, suddenly feeling afraid.

"He's got an extra sentinel," Kohaku explained, pointing at something behind Kagura.

"Yo." The strange voice caused Kagura to turn around; where she saw the most peculiar thing she had ever come across. "The name's Pakkun. I've got my eye on you!" Upon saying this, the dog indicated his task by placing a paw on his eyes and then pointing it at Kagura.

Naraku had told Kakashi to spy on Kagura through Pakkun!

**Preview**

Naruto: We're off on an adventure! Believe it!

Koga: It seems a woman has lost her child thanks to an evil lord.

Naruto: Now it's up to us to get the kid back!

Koga: But what does that have to do with the strange peach tree in the garden?

Naruto: Well, it looks like you're going to find out, eh?

Kagome: Next time in Target: Inuyasha! "The birth of Momotaro the Peach Boy!"

Sakura: I suggest you google Momotaro and read his story before reading the chapter next week! See you soon!


	11. Chapter 11

**Author's Note: **Well, it has been a while, hasn't it? I've decided to make this update extra special for those who have been dying to see this story continue, for continue it shall. I have revised all of the earlier chapters (There has been no major changes to the story) and have decided that I shall briefly recount the story so far since it really _has _been a while and you've probably forgotten everything now. Also, look forward to cameo appearances of two other well-known anime characters and a bonus article at the end of the chapter all about Neji Hyuga.

**The Story so far: **Four Ninjas from the Village Hidden in the Leaves travel to Honshu on an A-Rank mission: destroy Inuyasha, Kagome, Miroku and Sango! Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura decide, instead, to betray their employer Naraku, leaving Kakashi at an impasse.

Naraku's group seems to have traitors everywhere. Kagura and Kohaku ask Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura and Koga to help them defeat Naraku; Kanna has sealed Naraku's heart inside Hakudoshi's creation Moryomaru. And now, Kakashi is told to kill the priestess Kikyo as well as use Pakkun to relay information on Naraku's incarnations.

Now, join Team Koga (Koga, Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura) on a feudal fairy tale. With Ninjas!

**The Birth of Momotaro, the Peach Boy**

Once upon a time, there lived an old couple in feudal Japan. Although they were happy, they were childless and somehow, their lives were incomplete.

One day, the old man was fishing by the stream when he saw the largest peach he had ever come across floating in the water. It could feed him and his wife for days! The old man quickly fished the peach out of the water and brought it home. His wife was delighted with it and together, they split open the peach to see what was inside.

Out crawled a little, healthy boy. It was the greatest shock in their lives!

Eventually, the old couple decided to call the boy Momotaro. When he grew up, Momotaro would be the strongest and mightiest in his village and his exploits would be known by the Japanese for all time to come. This is the story of his origins within the peach.

* * *

"Are we there yet?" said Naruto.

"Where's 'there?'" asked Koga,

"Naraku's castle," Naruto replied.

"Um… no."

"Then what's that castle in the distance for?"

"No clue."

"Then let's go there!"

Koga couldn't think of a reason why they all couldn't indulge in the pleasant diversion of castle-visiting, so he answered, "Why not?" And he shrugged.

* * *

Although the castle of Lord Momiji was not very large, this fault was made up by a bountiful garden within the inner walls. It was regularly maintained in the watchful presence of the guards and civilians. Lord Momiji and his wife Lady Momo invariably looked over the garden each morning prior their daily routines. For though the garden was exceptionally beautiful, there was one part of it that commanded all attention.

A large peach tree lay in the very centre of the garden. It seemed to shine, even when the sun was not smiling over it. The soil around the tree was the richest and most fertile to be seen, and the fruits dangling from the high branches were still ripening but promised much in harvest. This tree was where people went to pray. In Japan, the peach represented strength, and the tree's presence was so influential that it was thought capable of listening to thoughts in a human mind.

A woman walked to the base of the sanctimonious peach tree and prayed: "Please, peach tree, I hope my boy will be returned soon. Our lord never gave us a choice; he took Taro and all the other newborns today. He told us that the children would become mighty warriors. But all I want is for Taro to be happy and for me to see him again."

For years, Rukia and her husband Ichigo had been wandering demon slayers, using their talents in martial arts to help those in need. However, once Taro was conceived, the two had to settle down. Ichigo was offered a job as a gardener at Lord Momiji's castle and Rukia stayed with him. The two planned to resume their travels once Taro was strong enough to handle such a life. But that did not mean that Taro's parents saw him as a setback.

Rukia heard someone call her name. "Rukia, what are you doing by the peach tree?" It was her husband's voice. "Come back here."

Rukia turned around and sighed. "Of course, Ichigo." Then she continued indignantly, "I was only praying by the peach tree."

Ichigo snorted. "Who'd worship a peach tree?" he asked cynically.

Now, Rukia was starting to get frustrated. "Don't you care about Taro at all? He's your son!"

At this fierce accusation, Ichigo looked slightly shocked. "Of course I care about Taro," he said. "But what's the point in asking a tree for help? If we want to get Taro back, we may as well take action ourselves, right?"

Rukia looked away. She knew that what Ichigo had said was right but she also knew that nobody could stand up to the sadistic Lord Momiji or his vain wife Momo.

Suddenly, Ichigo spoke. "Hey, there's someone at the entrance."

Rukia looked up and saw that Ichigo had already head off to greet the newcomers. She sighed and followed him, conscious of the gaping hole in her heart that her son had once filled.

The wind blew the peach tree and for a moment, there was no one to watch the gently swaying branches. For some reason, the happy aura of the tree almost felt like rotting corpses when no one was there to tell the difference.

* * *

Instead of displaying the common reactions of shock and ill-feeling upon coming face-to-face with three Ninjas and a demon, Rukia said, with a voice filled with puzzled curiosity, "Now how did you four get allowed into the garden?"

Naruto, Koga, Sasuke and Sakura could not adequately explain this phenomenon.

Since Ichigo was feeling much more worried about Rukia and Taro than about dangerous-looking intruders, he said, "If you do a job for us, we will show you the famed sacred peach tree, okay?"

"Sacred peach tree?" Koga repeated, slightly bemused. Sasuke looked on with mild interest. Rukia flashed Ichigo an odd look.

Ichigo nodded. "But first…" he said. "Look over there by the gate."

Everyone looked. A man dressed in the formal robes befitting a castle lord was standing by the guards with an air of imperiousness. It seemed the middle-aged feudal lord was telling the guards something important, although an air of calm intelligence radiated off him.

"Who's he?" asked Sakura inquisitively.

"That's Lord Momiji," Ichigo said. "I want you to find out what he did about our son, Taro. If it's something bad, please bring him back to us."

Rukia smiled. So that was what Ichigo planned to do.

Further details about the situation were given out. It took Naruto very little persuasion to undertake this B-rank (possibly C-rank) mission. Sakura too was inclined to help Ichigo and Rukia. Koga wanted to see the peach tree because he was hungry and didn't think it prudent to devour Ichigo and Rukia, despite his instincts. And Sasuke simply didn't care either way.

Ichigo lead Team Koga over to the peach tree. "There's the tree," he said, pointing.

As Sakura remarked on how pretty it was, Koga took one look at the peach tree and narrowed his eyes.

* * *

Team Koga spent the rest of the evening scrutinising Lord Momiji's actions. It was night when Lord Momiji retired indoors. He was an unpleasant, oily sort of fellow and were it not for the mission, the team would not have bothered following him.

As the guards began to yawn in their sentry duties, they were warily regarded by the Ninjas in the shadows.

"Hey, where's Koga-sensei?" Naruto asked suddenly.

This inquiry evoked a harsh "Shh!" from Sakura, and her hand immediately clamped over his mouth. A guard blinked and then he yawned again. All became quiet once more.

"He went to the peach tree," Sasuke explained calmly, which caused Naruto to look up in confusion, wondering why on earth Koga would take such an interest in an inanimate object.

At this point, Sakura uttered, "Come on; let's sneak inside now." Sasuke and Naruto nodded.

* * *

The peach tree rustled ominously. Koga's nose twitched. "I knew it," he said. "You're not a sacred tree at all – you're a demon!"

The tree rustled mutely in reply.

"Ha, Koga sneered, "You think you can fool me when you can't. I wonder what you're planning."

Koga had no idea when he became so self-righteous. Perhaps it was Inuyasha's fault. All Koga knew was that he was not going to allow the demonic peach tree to take advantage of a myriad of naïve souls. And while Naruto and the others were to investigate Lord Momiji's motives, he, Koga, would do the same for the peach tree.

Koga, at this point, heard the sound of an approaching stranger through his adept hearing. Turning his head slightly, he came face-to-face with Lady Momo, Lord Momiji's wife. He knew it was her by the pompous stature and expensive clothing.

"Who are you?" Lady Momo's voice was amusingly high-pitched in its artful blend of fear and distrust. "What are you doing in my garden?"

"Last time I checked, you weren't the one taking care of the garden," Koga retorted. "Therefore, it's not yours, at least, not according to common sense!"

Lady Momo's lips curled in disdain. "You're an impertinent fool," she snapped. Then she added, as an afterthought, "Wolf pup."

Koga frowned. This woman did not appear to be afraid of him at all, which was worrying. Most high-born ladies would scream pathetically at the sight of a demon, so either Lady Momo had spunk or she had something up her sleeve.

Just then, a very strange and peculiar thing happened which disrupted them both.

* * *

"I don't know what you're talking about," Lord Momiji babbled.

The three Ninjas had cornered the feudal lord into a secluded room covered by shoji screens. Sasuke had been careful to knock out all guards in the vicinity and Sakura was on lookout in the passageway for intruders. This left Naruto to engage with Lord Momiji, who was cowering behind a statue of Buddha with obvious fear.

Upon hearing Lord Momiji's nervously spoken statement, Naruto challenged him rather bluntly: "Oh, yeah? And what if I do this?" He straightened up and made hand signs, yelling, "Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

Lord Momiji almost fainted at the sight of _more _angry-looking Ninjas.

"Go easy on him, Naruto," came Sakura's voice from behind the shoji screen. "We'll never find Taro if we kill him."

"Taro?" Lord Momiji was sweating. "You mean the babies? I took them for the peach tree. It said if I gave him children to eat, I would be provided with an elixir of life, enough for me and my wife."

"The peach tree?" said Naruto in disgust. "You mean that tree in the garden eats humans?" He had never heard of such a thing before.

Sasuke asked, "Where are the babies now?" When Lord Momiji remained silent, he poked him with a kunai. "Answer me."

"I already handed them to the tree." Lord Momiji's voice was barely a whisper. "Just this morning I did it. The tree will sprout fruit and for a while, the babies will be living inside the core. Then slowly, they will disintegrate, replaced by the elixir of life."

Sakura gasped, "How revolting!" She had met her fair share of villains in the past but Lord Momiji had to the most unctuous. Exchanging babies for an elixir was something Orochimaru might do!

"Let's go save the babies!" Naruto cried enthusiastically, forgetting to remove his clones in his zeal. "Believe it!"

Lord Momiji began to edge away. Sasuke poked him again. "You're coming with us," he declared roughly, grabbing the hapless lord by the scruff of his neck.

Lord Momiji might have been the reincarnation of a mouse. He made a squeaking noise uncannily alike the small, furry mammal.

* * *

The peach tree was growing fruit the size of cannon balls.

"How," Koga gasped, "Can a fruit grow as I watch it?" Although he didn't quite understand how it was happening, it _was _happening nonetheless. He had a suspicion that there was some substance behind the trees abnormal growth but he was more worried about what other manifestations this might cause.

Lady Momo proclaimed in a gratified tone, "At last, the tree has bore the elixir of life."

"You idiot," Koga murmured.

Just then, a masculine voice seemed to issue from the dreaded peach tree. It was deep; deeper than Naraku's it was like it belonged from the roots of earth itself. It did not thunder, nor did it waver for a single moment.

"Momo, take a peach," it said. "Take it and eat."

With trembling hands, Lady Momo reached forward. Her face was as pale as the waxing moon, yet the exhilaration on her predisposed countenance was undeniable.

"No!" Koga roared, fiercely aware that the fruit being offered was probably a trap. He leaped forward to knock Lady Momo out of the tree's path.

Suddenly, there was a plop sound; a branch, being too weak to support a now enormous peach, had let drop the peach into Koga's strong hands. The ruffled Lady Momo, seeing and not liking the latest turn of events, snarled in a not very lady-like manner and proceeded to wrestle Koga to the ground. It was a foolish action and one with a singularly grave consequence: Koga let go of the peach in order to retaliate.

The peach tree was situated on a hill. On the west side there was the castle's foundations and on the east a bubbling stream. It was by sheer cruel fate that when the peach had fallen, it had been inclined to roll down the east side of the hill – directly into the stream!

"Uh oh," said Koga. His eyes followed the peach's rapid progress downstream.

"Never mind," said Lady Momo. "There are plenty more." Her gaze shifted back towards the tree, which had now fallen silent. Again her hand reach out.

Thunk! A kunai knife embedded itself in the trunk of the tree, narrowly missing Lady Momo's arms by inches. Suddenly paralysed with fear, she could only turn her stunned eyes towards the skilful thrower of the knife.

"Don't touch any more babies," said Sasuke menacingly.

Naruto grinned. Shoving Lord Momiji's quivering body onto the grass, he cried, "Now you're going to watch that tree burn down!"

"No!" the tree growled, and everyone stared.

Fortunately Koga had been through the shock before and recovered quickly. He scowled and brought his feet up, preparing to kick the tree and cause all of the leaden fruit to drop. The tree had put up a demonic barrier around its trunk and it rather annoyed Koga that he would have to break through it.

The shards of the sacred jewel inside Koga's legs glimmered.

The tree let out a hoarse moan as the invisible barrier around it was penetrated by Koga's strong legs. As Koga collided with the tree, his entire weight behind him, he yelled out a fierce battle cry and shut his eyes tight.

Lord Momiji and Lady Momo's faces literally fell with the fruit.

"Sakura, gather the peaches!" Sasuke ordered quickly. As Sakura rushed to do his bidding, Sasuke began making hand seals. "Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!"

Naruto wasn't particularly fond of Sasuke's natural leadership skills, but even he was glad as the tree came alight and was slowly reduced to ashes, which the wind blew into the stream so that they followed the only missing peach.

* * *

On the following morn, a terrible sound filled the air; it was the desperate voice of a mother deprived of her child.

"Taro… is gone!"

The disgraced Lord Momiji and Lady Momo had already set on their way, but this did not lessen the tragedy that had occurred.

"Rukia, it'll be all right."

"Fine way those Ninjas and that demon screwed up. They're not even here to help me find my boy."

"Rukia, I'm sure Taro is still alive. Something tells me he'll be a great fighter, like we were."

"How do you know Taro even exists any more? How do you know?!"

"I don't. But all the same, I don't think he'll ever be forgotten."

"Thank you… Ichigo."

**Preview**

Naruto: How could you, Inuyasha?! All this time you've been two-timing Kagome with Kikyo!

Inuyasha: Shh, not so loud, idiot! Kagome might hear!

Naruto: But she already knows, right? Look, she's crying and hugging me and stuff.

Inuyasha: Oh, you feel so special, don't you, brat?

Sakura: Kagome's not feeling well at all. Next time, in Target: Inuyasha: The Tale of the Two-timing Scoundrel!

**Bonus Article**

_Ten Ten explains how Neji is superior in every way to the males of _InuYasha_._

As you know, Neji is the most talented genin in Konoha. Sure, he may have lost to Naruto but that was pure fluke. I'm quite certain that if Neji came into contact with these so called "Bishonen" from _InuYasha_, he could account for all of them. Let me go through each guy one at a time.

Inuyasha: If Neji used his Sixty-Four Pointer strike, Inuyasha would not be able to use his giant sword. He would have to rely on his claws and frankly, his Taijutsu sucks. He only has two moves and both of them are really easy to dodge.

Bankotsu: If Inuyasha could beat this guy and if Neji could beat Inuyasha… do I even have to spell it out for you?

Koga: With his Byakugan, Neji would be able to see those jewel shards in Koga's legs. Neji's accuracy is superb because of his ability to hit chakra points, so removing Koga's shards in one strike would be no problem for our resident genius. After that, the wolf's a pushover. Without his precious jewel shards, he's a baby at fighting.

Naraku: Well, Neji's not evil so by default, he is superior to Naraku.

Sesshomaru: This guy might be cool but the people he hangs around with certainly aren't! Look at him with that little girl – how embarrassing! And even Lee is cooler than Jaken.

Miroku: Unlike this pathetic monk, Neji would not have to resort to groping at all. I mean, the Byakugan sees all, right?

Hojo: I don't even need to say anything.

And so there you go. I would go on further but I don't have any more room. If you can think of an _InuYasha _boy who is better than Neji, tell me and I'll think of a good rebuttal.


End file.
